Are women silent members of society?
I popped over to BanglaTV again last night to appear on their weekly women's show "Voices". This week we were discussing the archetype of the silent submissive (Bengali) Muslim woman. I put Bengali in brackets because I couldn't comment on this from direct genetic experience, but just social contact. The show has been running for a few months now and clearly has started to gather a following. It's a phone in show, broadcast live, available on sky.
This week, there was the question of where does the silent stereotype originate from? Is it really the case? I was more interested in how both men, but also women perpetuate such ideals and enforce them to retain the status quo.
Also intriguing for me was the idea put forward by some of the other studio guests that being an 'active' member of society is a religious obligation. Being active can of course mean many things, but I got the impression they meant going out and about doing community activities, leading or engaging in activities, politicking, spreading the word and engaging in 'dawah' and other such things.
These are clearly all worthy and as a society people need to contribute towards community service. However, I think we were missing the clear sense that actually as a woman it's ok to stay at home (which we touched on) but broadly women should have the choice to participate or not, that there is a range of what women can and want to be, and being Muslim is not a barrier to this. The culture stops us.
But is being 'active' really a duty? In my view, no. Being a good person, and dealing with your personal obligations is important, that is the basis for me. I don't believe you need to force people to go out and about in an almost-enforced belief that they have to do it. If they choose to, that is great, if not, then that's ok too. Sometimes I think we load up too many religious obligations onto people, more than is necessary. And frankly that puts normal human beings off. The Prophet Muhammed described what a human being needs to do in a very simple way "Make sure you undertake all your obligations, stay away from everything that is wrong".
This week, there was the question of where does the silent stereotype originate from? Is it really the case? I was more interested in how both men, but also women perpetuate such ideals and enforce them to retain the status quo.
Also intriguing for me was the idea put forward by some of the other studio guests that being an 'active' member of society is a religious obligation. Being active can of course mean many things, but I got the impression they meant going out and about doing community activities, leading or engaging in activities, politicking, spreading the word and engaging in 'dawah' and other such things.
These are clearly all worthy and as a society people need to contribute towards community service. However, I think we were missing the clear sense that actually as a woman it's ok to stay at home (which we touched on) but broadly women should have the choice to participate or not, that there is a range of what women can and want to be, and being Muslim is not a barrier to this. The culture stops us.
But is being 'active' really a duty? In my view, no. Being a good person, and dealing with your personal obligations is important, that is the basis for me. I don't believe you need to force people to go out and about in an almost-enforced belief that they have to do it. If they choose to, that is great, if not, then that's ok too. Sometimes I think we load up too many religious obligations onto people, more than is necessary. And frankly that puts normal human beings off. The Prophet Muhammed described what a human being needs to do in a very simple way "Make sure you undertake all your obligations, stay away from everything that is wrong".
posted by Shelina Zahra Janmohamed at 21:46
3 Comments:
I just watched the newsnight you was on.
Is it ok for me to wear a balaclava in public??
what if all white men start wearing them??
how will cctv work then??
why should one peoples hide their ID?
ill be back to see if you answer!!!
You can wear a balaclava in public if you wish. All men, of whatever colour (let's not be racist) could wear one if they want. This is the joy of living in a democracy.
I believe CCTV works by having some kind of cable and recording mechanism looping back to a monitoring system. Do you wish to hide your face whilst you commit a crime? I believe the statistics of white men committing crimes are far higher than those of the approximately 50 thousand women in the UK who choose to veil.
Wearing a veil is not about hiding your identity. It is about a woman's choice to choose which clothes she wears.
I think you should worry more about the women who are forced to define their own image and confidence by society and the media who disallows the freedom to live healthy lives and be who they are, not be forced to live skinny manicured lives like mannequins.
Why are you so upset by a simple piece of cloth?
YEAH REALLY! WHY ARE PEOPLE UPSET THAT I DONT SHOW THEM MY BODY
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