mughes

What causes separation?  A veil?  A cross?  A star of David?  Money?  Sushi?  Balloons?

On October 7, 2006, Jack Straw, Britain’s ex-foreign secretary said that women who wear veils over their face can make community relations harder.  Tony Blair later backed him up when he said that Muslim veils are “a mark of separation.”

A few days later, I was looking for a book and stumbled upon Snow by Orhan Pamuk.  The novel is based in Turkey and looks at issues which create feelings of political, cultural and religious separation.  The central conflict is a group of young women who have committed suicide.  Some believe it is because they are being forced to remove their head scarves – they’re not able to go to school and their family businesses are threatened.  Of course, in the opinion of some of the characters, the girls would never commit suicide because of religious reasons. 

I know that Mr. Blair and Mr. Straw are doing their best.  However, I have a difficult time understanding how they can believe they know what is best for Muslim women.  Why can’t they see that the scarves are in fact, a symbol of the strength these women have in their beliefs, a symbol of their discipline?  Why can’t we all just focus on what makes us the same, and not what makes us different?  What truly causes separation is a belief in right and wrong.  The next time you think someone else is wrong; their opinion or their action, I propose that you focus instead on what you have in common.  And remember what His Holiness the Dali Lama says about forgiveness.

After reading Snow I have a little more insight into the possibilities of what could be happening in the minds of women who are criticized for wearing a head scarf or “veil.”  I recall back in the early days of the US conflict with the Taliban after 9-11, the head scarf was a key symbol uniting Americans with the oppressed people of Afghanistan.  But where were the media interviews with women who wanted to wear head scarves and in fact, believed with every stitch of their being that covering their hair was central to the reverence they show to their G-d?  I feel betrayed by the media.  I was not given both sides of the story.  I feel sad that these women, these pious, modest and compassionate women have been so misunderstood by over 300 million people. 

I recommend Snow by Orhan Pamuk.  About a week after I purchased it, Orhan Pamuk received the Nobel Prize for Literature.  It is a complicated read but developing an understanding of the culture that Turks truly experience is one way that we will move closer to not feeling separate from Turks specifically and Muslims in general.  And one step in that direction is what gives us the ability to wish for their safekeeping and success in their quest for endless joy.  The same quest as our own.

Incidentally (or not), lots of interesting stuff happening between France and Turkey right now.

This entry was posted on Sunday, November 5th, 2006 at 1:24 pm and is filed under Compassion. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.