...Part II In this section, I will examine veiling practices among Muslim women from an emic perspective. As Crapo (2013) describes it, “An emic description or analysis—that is, an insider’s or native’s meaningful account—may be written for outsiders but portrays a culture and its meanings as the insider understands it” (p.27). In her book chapter entitled The Veil in Their Minds and on Our Heads: Veiling Practices and Muslim Women, Hoodfar (1997) examines misconceptions and stereotypes surrounding this practice. From an emic perspective, Muslim women face unwarranted scrutiny over their choices from people who often have no understanding of the many reasons why women wear the veil. The reasons for wearing the veil may differ from individual to individual and from culture to culture (Hoodfar, 1997). In any culture, it is typical for motivations to vary in this way. For example, in America, wearing revealing clothing may signify confidence in one’s body for some and insecurity for others. There is rarely a one-size-fits-all explanation for any behavior. Despite this, Hoodfar (1997) notes that Muslim women living in North America and Europe often face harsh criticism over their choice to wear the veil, even though many people do not fully understand the practice, and admit to this when engaging Muslim women in conversation about the practice. Muslim women feel harassed and attacked about their choices no matter what they say, and are sometimes afraid of...
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...Understanding Islam Christy A. Goff Dr. Thornton REL 212 September 8, 2012 In this paper, I will be reporting on my religious field research of Islam. The research that I have conducted has afforded me the opportunity to speak with, listen, and develop a stronger understanding of the Islamic faith. My research has also helped to dissolve some of the misconceptions that surround Islam. I will cover four major points throughout this paper. First, I will discuss preexisting misconceptions held against Islam. Second, I will analyze how my prior understanding of Islam was altered, or not, upon completion of my field research. Third, I will discuss whether or not I believe misconceptions of other people’s religions are common and explain in detail why or why not. Fourth, I will recommend at least one step that could be taken to help minimize misconceptions that people have in regards to other religions. I hope, through the reading of my field research report, to provide a stronger sense of understanding and receptiveness that I now have for other religions to the reader. Misconceptions of Islam In order to discuss the misconceptions that surround Islam, we must first delve into understanding what the word “Islam” actually means. “The word "Islam" means peace and submission. Peace means to be at peace with yourself and your surroundings. Submission means to submit to the Will of God. A broader meaning of the word "Islam," is to achieve peace by submitting to the...
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...first impressions 7 The present research 10 Method 12 Positive Survey 13 Non Muslim perception of Islam in the West 13 Non Muslim perception of Islam in the West 15 Non Muslim perception of Islam in the west 20 Non Muslim perception of Islam in the west 23 Communication scale 28 Islamophobia scale 29 Design 30 Participants 30 Materials 30 Procedure 30 Analysis 31 Potential applications 33 Limitations and future directions 34 Conclusion 36 References 37 Abstract This research study will aim to measure the Islamophobic beliefs in non-Muslim people living in the West in multi-cultural, multi-ethnic and multi-faith societies such as London. To conduct this study, I will be replicating a study that has been produced by Everett et al (2015) called ‘Covered in Stigma? I will be conducting this research project to test Non-Muslim responses towards Muslim appearing people such as men in traditional clothes, beards and women in head coverings. I will use quantitative analysis to test my hypothesis, using two questionnaires, the Islamophobia scale and the Communication Scale as well as images of Muslim men and women in Islamic clothing depicted in an affirmative light or a poorly to prime participants beforehand. Introduction Prejudice and inequity towards the Muslim community has risen largely over the last few years. There is great proof indicating that Muslims are experiencing different categories...
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...Semester Independent Research Project Master of Research Thesis Proposal Jasmine Jaber Introduction The Argument Against 42886090 Over the past few years, the veiling practices of Muslim women have been the issue of public debate and come under direct government gaze. In particular, countries such a France and Turkey have issued a ban on wearing the burqa in public. The ban relates to the general wearing of the burqa and not for certain situations such as identity checks. This debate has spread to Australian soil where dozens of Australians, such as Cory Bernardi, have enunciated their approval and have called for such a ban in Australia. While some countries have similar meaning of the veil, the majority of non-Islamic individuals across Europe and Australia have interpreted the veil in their own way and thus attached to it different meanings causing different perceptions as to why or why not it should be worn. Using the article by Bernardi (2010) as a starting point, I will critique the feeble objections writers of the topic have against the burqa and justify why their reasons for a burqa ban are invalid and cannot benefit society, and if anything, set society backwards. By interpreting the results of my focus groups, this thesis will explain how the majority of women who wear the burqa do so by choice and society must accept their choice. Also, I will explain that just because some women are forced to wear the...
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... My first encounter with the Islamic faith was a result of the 9-11 tragedies. While I like to think that I think for myself, I must admit to being a sheep during that time. I did not know anything about Muslims or their faith. I also confess to believing that is was only practiced in the Middle East. The Central Asian Arabian desert saw birth to the Islamic religion around 600 AD. The religion started with the teachings of Prophet Muhammad who is considered to be the messenger of the one and only, formless, all-powerful God, Allah. Islam spread rapidly from the Arabian Peninsula in less than 30 years and managed to defeat the Persian and Roman Empires. Over the next several centuries, Islam reached as far east as India and westward to Spain. Through traveling traders, Islam spread to Southeast Asia; where today Indonesia is the largest Muslim country. Today, Islam is considered to be the fastest growing religion in the world. According to ncccusa.org, “there are about 1.2 billion Muslims and about 2 billion Christians in the world. By 2025, it is expected that Islam will grow by 50%, and Christianity will grow by 31%. Indonesia has the greatest number of Muslims with over 170 million adherents. Pakistan is next with 136 million”. If one follows the Islamic faith, women and men are equal in rights and life. They are not seen as equal in physical attributes therefore it is the man’s duty to be the physical laborer and be the main financial supporter of the family. The woman...
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...Women Who Wear the Hijab I chose to do my opposing view paper on women who wear the hijab. It’s mostly found in Western Hemisphere countries but some do wear it here in the United States. The hijab is the long covering of the female body that usually starts at the top of the head and covers the body except for the face and the hands. It is also very big in size. If a person was to look at a person in the hijab all you would see is the face, not the head (hair, ears, etc). Most people along with me think that women wear them because of the male structure in their families such as their dads and uncles. The thought of them being a terrorist is also amongst the reasons why people look at them strange or whisper behind their back. The most popular perception of the hijab is that women wear them because their husband or fathers do not want anyone to see them or their hair because it is sacred. I think women should be allowed to wear whatever they want in front of whoever they want because it’s not fair that man can wear what he wants out in public but a woman can’t. Actually the women wear the hijab out of a sign of respect for themselves. Sumayyah Hussein, a Canadian Muslim states that they wear it so men cannot judge her by her appearance but are forced to evaluate her by her personality, character, and morals. People respect those women so much because of what they stand for and what they wear. Others may judge them. The hiding of the women’s shape or body structure is also...
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...Religion Research MSB Religion Research Islam is one of the world’s largest religions with estimates of around 1.6 billion practitioners worldwide. (The Future of the Global Muslim Population, 2011, para. 1) The Islam religion is a monotheistic religion that actually shares some of the same beliefs and even texts as Christianity and Judaism. Even though Islam is considered by many to be the religion of terrorists the actual religious texts preach kindness and compassion to all creatures of the earth. The main tenants of the religion are the five pillars of Islam which include, (1) Testimony of faith; saying with conviction “there is no true god but Allah and Mohammed is his messenger”. (2) Prayer; all Muslims are required to pray toward Mecca five times a day. (3) Giving to the needy. (4) Fasting; Muslims are required to fast during the holy month of Ramadan from sunrise till sunset unless medically unable or traveling soldiers engaged in war are also exempt. (5) Pilgrimage; any Muslim who is physically and financially is obligated to make the pilgrimage or Hajj to Mecca at least once in their lifetime. (A Brief Guide to Understanding Islam website, n.d., Chapter 3) The biggest belief of the Muslim religion is that there is only one God, this is the one major point of contention that it has with Christianity. Muslims acknowledge Jesus as being a great profit and even acknowledge his birth to the Virgin Mary but deny that he is the son of God because if this were true...
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...Another approach to studying the oppression of Muslim women that the U.S. portrayed in the media to fuel the War on Terror is that the U.S. portrayed Islam as backwards and an uncivilized culture because of women’s oppression. Evelyn Alsultany’s analysis of news broadcast stations like CNN, NBC, and CBS after the 9/11 attacks examined that these news stations portrayed women’s veiled oppression, female genital mutilation, and honour killings as the nature of Islam’s backwardness and oppressiveness. Many media stations like CNN have viewed the invasion of Afghanistan as bringing light to the darkness of oppressed women and when they rid the towns of Taliban, women were depicted as in high heels and free women. The depiction of Muslim women as...
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...Muslim Women and the Veil For this critical review analysis paper, I have chosen to do set four of the project. I will begin to analyze and break down the fundamental themes in each of the articles from the sources provided by the professor. My examination of the texts, Islamic and Body Politics by Asma Barlas and Rethinking Muslim Women and the Veil by Katherine Bullock, will be purely academic. Both these articles share similar views of the concept of veiling and portrayal of the female body by opposing the monolithic and secular views given to the veil by the majority of the world. The view given to the veil is simple and is explicitly cited in Rethinking Muslim Women and the Veil, it is that "the popular Western notion that the veil is a symbol of Muslim women's oppression is a constructed image that does not represent the experience of all those who wear it." My stance on the subject of veiling will be in support of: those who wear the Veil (or as I will interchangeably mention it in this paper, "Hjiab" - Arabic term for head scarf) do it so by their own will and not to represent the view of oppression that has been deemed on it, also, to reiterate that the Qur'an or any other Islamic text do not support the views of oppression of women. Through my investigation of the two given articles, I will support my view with the help of three different articles that share the same type of commentary on the issue of Veiling. My inclusion of the article Eastern Veiling, Western Freedom...
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...Understanding the Cultural Differences of Islam Muslims differ significantly in their evaluations of the importance of religion based on the region they are located. There are variations of views on such topics of education, prayer, worshiping and morality found in different regions. In this paper I will argue that many differences that exist between various Islamic communities can be explained by understanding the role of regionally specific political problems and cultural practices outside of the Islamic tradition. Though people around the world practice an allegedly unified Islam, their understandings of the tradition reflect the specific local contexts and circumstances of individuals, communities, and nations. The challenge of western colonialism caused Muslims to be against European imperialism as it threatened their political, religious and cultural identity. Their responses to colonialism varied from rejection and confrontation to admiration and imitation (PP Islam and the West 24). Showing how reactions to westernization can be specific to region. The country Turkey operates one example of a nonviolent revolution. In Turkey, Islam was showing a more dominant position is the social-economic and political life of society. With the acceptance of westernization, Turkey had been able to experience the power of religion in Muslim politics cordially. A little to the East, the Iranian revolution in Iran reinforced the belief that Muslims wanted to emulate the ideas of the west; economic...
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...Issue.I/Feb; 12pp.1-4 A. PREMA Research Papers ISSN:-2230-7850 WOMEN STATUS IN INDIA A. PREMA Ph.D., Research Scholar, Department of History, Annamalai University, Annamalainagar-68002,Tamilnadu. Abstract This paper tries to explain the development of women movement in India and the status of women during the Vedic period and British period. It also tries to explain the position of women on the basis of socioeconomic – political empowerment. KEY WORDS : Women position in India a historical back ground, Bakti movement, political movement, socio-religious reform movement, status of women during British period, women's organizations stared by Men and women and conclusion. Introduction The status of women in India has been subject to many great changes over the past few millennia, from equal status with men in ancient times through the low points of the medieval period, to the promotion of equal rights by many reformers, the history of women in India has been eventful. In modern India, women have adorned high offices in India including that of the president, prime minister, speaker of the lok sabha and leader of the opposition. As of 2011, the president of India, the speaker of the lok sabha and the leader of the opposition in lok sabha (lower house of the parliament) are all women. The roots of the Indian women's movement go back to the 19th century male social reformers who took up issues concerning women and started women's organizations. Women stated forming their own organization...
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...Lee Sociology 4/16/2013 Research Paper Islamic Women in Society “Common Perceptions of Muslim Women” Islam is one of the three most popular monotheistic religions in the world. It has both its positive and negative images in the media. Commonly, in society Islam is looked upon as an extreme and radical religion. This paper will take a close look into the reactions to the "Muslim Women" in both American and Muslim American societies in the U.S. Whether it’s the clothing, occupations, marriages, or inequality, the women in this religion seem to be under a magnify glass in society. Islam is the second largest religion and the world and is still increasing in number. Statistics show that estimates of the total number of Muslims range from 0.7 to 1.8 billion worldwide and 1.1 to 7 million in the U.S alone (B.A Robinson). These numbers show that not only is Islam present is everyday society but it is here to stay. The history of Islam started way before America, in the Arabian Peninsula. Before Islam, or Al-Jahiliyah the people of the Arabian plate lived in tribes and the customs were much different to those in present day. Some of the customs that were present before Islam was arranged marriages, the killing of infant girls, and very few rights for women and slaves. All of these pre- Islamic customs were abolished when Islam was brought forth to the people of Arabia. Islam is a religion that not only respects its women but in fact cherishes their...
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...tension/alienation amongst religious communities and is being utilized as a tool for vote bank politics by politicians. Case Study 1: The Saffronization of Educational Institutions One of the first moves taken by Murli Manohar Joshi, HRD minister in 2000 was to appoint Mr. BR Grover as Chairman of the Indian Council of Historical Research. It was a widely held view that Mr. Grover was a historian of mediocre status and a RSS sympathizer of high standing. This decision elicited much indignation, however knowing the BJP’s policy of ‘pro-Hindutva,’ one could hardly have been much surprised. Mr. Grover, did everything in his power to promote RSS ideology and even managed ‘evidence’, as the VHP representative on a Govt. panel on the Babri Masjid dispute, to argue that a Ram temple indeed existed on the Babri Masjid site and that it was destroyed during Babar’s regime to build the mosque. The weight of historical scholarship and archaeological evidence which suggests the contrary was totally discounted. A few months prior to this the Council of ICHR was reconstituted to achieve a near monopoly for the RSS in this important institution. The Indian Council of Social Science Research has been given an even more ‘august’ scholar as Director. Mr. ML Sondhi is a person of long standing service to the RSS and has been a Jan Sangh MP in 1967. Earlier, the Indian Institute of Advanced Studies (Simla), the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (which comes under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting)...
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...Report on Religious Field Research: Islam April Erique Dr. Keyes REL 212 12/11/11 Even though, it’s one of the most popular religions throughout the world, I believe that Islam is difficult to understand. People have their opinions about Islam and its followers. Especially, after September 11, 2001, many Americans became either fearful or angry towards Muslims and assumed that the Islamic religion and entire community was to blame. It’s a bit like the discrimination that Japanese Americans felt after Pearl Harbor but there wasn’t really blame on their religious views and morals. Well, before I actually had Muslim friends and acquaintances, I didn’t know much about the religion either. The good thing is that I wasn’t raised to be stereotypical but I did have a few ideas of the Islamic faith but I didn’t have any type of proof or reason behind it. One of the biggest misconceptions I had was that Muslims were against the belief of Jesus. Another big misconception I had with Islam was that all believers were Arab and was really only practiced in the Middle East. I also believed all Muslim women must stay covered up while in public and are believed to be beneath the men in their lives. Besides, women having limitations, I felt that it was a very strict religion in which the followers can’t drink, smoke, or partake in any type of promiscuous activities. As an outsider trying to catch a peek inside, I honestly had plenty of misconceptions of this...
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...name of Islam there are stereotypes and distrust geared towards the group. The purpose of this paper is to give a brief insight into the teachings of Islam and how those teaching promote love and peace, not war and bloodshed, in spite of the misconceptions. Understanding the Teachings of Islam Right now, Islam is a highly controversial and sensitive issue in today’s world and there are many misconceptions about its beliefs, values, and goals. The condition of Islam right now is in chaos because of the acts of terrorists and extremists. There needs to be an understanding that the religion of Islam does not portray violence and hate that most see in the media today. The religion of Islam is not very different from other highly practiced religions in the world. Many see Islam through a fallacious view that focuses on terrorists and extremists. Even though this religion teaches mercy and compassion, it has been abused by these people to change focus of the true meaning. The purpose of this paper is to give a brief insight into the teachings of Islam and how this religion is not about the violence and hate. By discussing its basic principles and practices there can be a better understanding of the religion. Islam is a highly practiced religion, even thought there are some variations through different countries and cultures. In Western Europe and North America, the number of Muslims is so significant that they are deemed the group with the most influence on the practicing of...
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