EDITORIAL – To veil or not to veil: the debate

Should women living outside Islamic countries be able to wear their veils? Many non-Muslims… Should women living outside Islamic countries be able to wear their veils? Many non-Muslims say no.

A debate has heated up in the United Kingdom, where political figures, like House of Commons Leader Jack Straw, have publicly denounced the practice citing that, among other reasons, veils make communication difficult.

This is the question much debated around the world and a question that has historically been met with strong feelings.

The French introduced a ban on “conspicuous religious symbols,” including Muslim headscarves, at the state school level in 2004. Priding themselves in a strong, law-supported separation of church and state, the ban was received with strong support by political and private citizens, according to the BBC. Veils can still be worn in Muslim schools and universities.

Currently the UK has no ban on Islamic dress, but schools are allowed to institute their own dress codes.

Many feel that while choosing to wear a veil is an act of personal freedom, it prohibits wearers from fully interacting with the society in which they are living. Hilary Armstrong, the UK’s Social Exclusion Minister, told the BBC that she believes veils can be problematic.

“Those who decide to wear the veil just make it that much more difficult for their neighbors, anybody that they’re talking to, to really feel that they are sharing values and so on with them,” she said.

“I think it is very difficult to actually wear a veil and participate in everything in our society.”

Muslims who feel that the British government is out of line should remember that when choosing to live in a non-Islamic country, they can’t expect to carry on as if they were living in a society where veils are the norm. Concessions have to be made by anyone who immigrates to another country in order to live and participate in a different culture. If Muslims decline changes, it’s not as if they can’t find a place that will better accommodate their lifestyle.

Sure, we can see how Islamic people feel targeted by this debate, and we don’t advocate encroaching on people’s personal freedoms. However, it should be the prerogative of employers and schools to set fair dress codes, dress codes that don’t just target Islamic dress, but rather overt religious expression in general. Just as employers have dress codes barring casual or otherwise inappropriate wear, full facial coverings could hinder an employee’s performance or interactions with coworkers and customers.

In many ways, veils may be a sign of oppression, but women who wear them are free to do so. Do they hinder communication? Probably. But Muslims should be willing to remove their veils at the discretion of their employers and institutions of education, or choose to work elsewhere.