A Story of Oppression and Injustice
Hello! I am Hijab, and this is my story.
My name is Hijab. People also address me as “Headscarf.” I am a fabric of average length. Some women use me to cover their hair. In some parts of the world, men also use me to cover their heads. I come in different varieties, styles, and colors. I am harmless. I have never killed anyone or stolen anything. I am just a piece of cloth.
But the world hates me!
The world sees me as a symbol of oppression and a sign of backwardness. I don’t know why I am judged so unfairly. I am banned in several parts of the world because people say I violate human rights. They say that I steal women’s freedom, and I am like a cage. Women who wear me by choice are fined in some places. Everyone talks about women’s rights and how their choices should be respected, but in reality, people follow a biased perspective. As per the world, women remain independent even if they cover their hair with a hat, hood, Mitpaḥat, or dupatta but they become oppressed the moment they put a hijab over their heads. A bride wearing a veil in a church is not considered oppressed, but a college-going woman wearing a hijab is considered backward.
Why is it that the world is only focused on women? There are many parts of this world where men also cover their heads. If covering your head is a sign of oppression and the world is merely raising its voice for women’s rights, then why is the world silent for those men who cover their heads? Why this selective approach?
The world says that forcing women to cover up is bad. It’s oppression. I also agree. You cannot force women to wear clothes they don’t want to wear. It should always be a woman’s choice. But isn’t forcing women to uncover also a sign of oppression? If women can wear bikinis on the beach or short skirts in markets, then why can’t women wear hijab in public? If ordering women not to show their legs in public is outrageously unacceptable, then why isn’t forcing women to uncover their heads in public similarly unacceptable?
The world always preaches about fairness, justice, and human rights, but does it really practice what it preaches? Why is the world silent? Am I also not oppressed? Who will answer these questions?
