The other day I read a chapter from the novel, The Politics of Behavior, Chapter 21, Hijab and American Muslim Women: Creating the Space for Autonomous Selves by Williams and Vahsi. The chapter discussed the ongoing debate of the meaning behind the hijab. They defined the hijab as, "a headscarf that covers a woman's head, hair, neck, and ears, but leaves the face uncovered." The debate behind the hijab is whether or not it is a symbol of oppression or a symbol of resistance against Western ideals.

Many Westerners have trouble understanding why women choose to voluntarily wear the hijab because we have different ideas of what equality means and is. The American idea of equal rights is different than the Muslim idea of equal rights. Muslims argue that difference does not equal inequality whereas American's believe that equality is treating all people the same. There is yet another misunderstanding in the relationship between culture and religion; the fact that they are two separate things. The Muslim faith doesn't match with Western culture. For instance, Americans have a much more relaxed and open view of sexuality whereas Muslims focus on the ability to control sexual impulses. Through the hijab, women are able to show that they don't abide by the typical view of Western ideals.

American Muslim women wear the hijab for a number of reasons. They feel that they gain more respect from the men within their community and that it levels out the playing field. The hijab also instantly shows what group they belong to while also allowing them to gain more social mobility; they can identify with a number of groups. Many Muslim women begin to wear the hijab in their college years as a way to separate themselves from their parents. Young Muslim women are wearing the hijab even if their mothers and grandmothers did not veil. They choose to veil to identify with a larger group or the bring back their religion. The hijab has also become a fashion statement in recent years.

On the flip side, the reason there is a debate about the hijab is because it can be seen as a form of oppression. Only Muslim women cover themselves but Muslim men do not. The purpose of the veil is also to advert the gaze of men outside the home in order to protect both men and women from sexual impulses. This again can be viewed as an oppressive act because it makes the women out to be temptresses. It also lends itself to the argument that if Muslim women didn't veil then men and women wouldn't be able to control themselves around one another; it removes responsibility from both parties to act as civilized human beings.

Bottom line is that some Muslim women choose to wear the hijab and others do not. They choose to veil or not veil for numerous reasons. As the authors said, "As with any social practice of embodied symbol, different people had different rationales for its use, and any given person often had more than one reason." Hijab or no hijab there should not be judgement.