I am muslim, and I am yet to meet someone who wears it out of oppression, or are forced to wear it.
Furthermore, I know heaps, and I mean heaps of converts, yes people that chose to become muslim at an adult age, that do wear it, and obviously they are not forced as their family are not muslims.
Ok fair enough, France is secular and doesn't want religion publicly promoted and such, but please don't say it's oppression against women.
The way of life that you have experienced in the Australian Islamic environment, where the Muslim community here has integrated into the society of the target destination country better than any other Muslim community in the world gives your experience a bit of a biased twist.
I have no doubt that the oppression is far less so Australia (in fact, that gives me a great deal of hope for the safe success of the Islamic emergence into the rest of the world). But you have to realise that every day in the countries where your family came from, women are physically harassed, jailed and/or stoned for not wearing the head covering. And many immigrant muslim communities that transport themselves to other countries take that with them. I don't think you can turn a blind eye to the simple fact that this oppression does happen, and is particularly problematic in countries where the community fails to integrate properly, as in France.
EDIT: But also, even here, where the physical safety fear is almost null, there is still the subtle sexism of "you are an immodest slut if you do not wear the burqa". Just look at the comments of your Australian cleric, Sheikh Taj Din Al-Hilali, "there were women who sway suggestively, and wear make-up and immodest dress ... " (this was from his rant on why women who get raped are to blame...)
I mean, when you're sending that kind of message about female 'modesty', from the most senior leader in your faith, what do you think the trickle-down message to females in your community is? Wear it, or be cast as "immodest" in the eyes of your family. That is brainwashing. Oppression of a less tangible, but ultimately appreciable and highly significant variety.
enwiabe, I think you're getting confused between Burqa and what most muslim women wear.
Burqa covers the WHOLE body including the face, which is not an obligation, what IS an obligation is to cover the hair and wear something that isn't too tight, that's it. And this is seen in many girls and women everywhere and has not been a problem.
No one says "you're dressing is immodest if you don't cover you face", But I do agree that Taj hilali should not have said what he did say, and I'm glad he isn't the Australian cleric anymore, neither has he been for the past few years lol.
And regarding the women being oppressed on account of them not covering their face, I'm sure this does not happen in most Muslim countries, but rather in a very minute number of them (I know in my country, a lot of women don't even cover their hair), and if women are oppressed by their family in France, then go ahead and ban it, but if it's simply as you say "they grew up with it, they don't know any better" then let them wear it as part of their culture...isn't that after all how cultures come to be?
You have freedom of choice up until it infringes on the rights of others. With your first example, not wearing anything creates a culture of fear for all parents where they are afraid to take their children out in public.
Hence why you are allowed public nudity in places like public beaches, where nobody is harmed by the nudity. Living in a democracy, we decide when too far is too far.
With your 2nd point, it is precisely for the reason that we have freedom of choice that we can be rude. Not saying please does not impinge on anybody's rights, therefore you can be as ill-mannered as you wish (it just won't win you many friends).
The burqa infringes on a woman's right to equality. That is what makes it unacceptable. Any culture set is FINE up until the point where it infringes on another's human right (to be safe in one's environment, to choose, to be equal under the law, etc.) after which it cannot be tolerated in a society like that of the French.
So you're assuming that all women that wear the Burqa were forced to wear it, shouldn't muslim women in France be asked if this is true first, then if the find that they don't feel equal because of it, ban the wearing of it?
Because just as you assumed that the women do not feel equal, then I can assume that the women do not feel that, rather they like wearing it and will not feel equal if they are not free to wear what they like.
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