Today’s industry is quickly catching onto the modest fashion trend, but the hijab is much more than a fad. While more and more businesses are seeing it as a lucrative commodity, the headscarf is a religious garment just as much as a political one. For generations, it has been a powerful symbol of Muslim women’s defiance against the male gaze, colonialism, and Islamophobia as we know it today. It’s also become a politicized garment that represents Muslim women’s control and autonomy, and has been at the center of a tug-of-war between governments and the people for its reclamation. We made a video focusing on the hijab in the most controversial region in the world to reinsert the nuance of the hijab’s history, strength, and tension into today’s fad headlines.
Today’s industry is quickly catching onto the modest fashion trend, but the hijab is much more than a fad. While more and more businesses are seeing it as a lucrative commodity, the headscarf is a religious garment just as much as a political one. For generations, it has been a powerful symbol of Muslim women’s defiance against the male gaze, colonialism, and Islamophobia as we know it today. It’s also become a politicized garment that represents Muslim women’s control and autonomy, and has been at the center of a tug-of-war between governments and the people for its reclamation. We made a video focusing on the hijab in the most controversial region in the world to reinsert the nuance of the hijab’s history, strength, and tension into today’s fad headlines.
You were doing just fine without that middle finger.. That was an overkill and distasteful!
I agree Alex5243. It was very interesting until she flipped us off basically telling us to go eff ourselves. It was very unpleasant.
I think right thing to do is for her to come out and own it and we all get carried away at times but will she actually do it or defend it, God knows but usually this when for me personally it is a turn off when someone intentionally or unintentionally goes over the board but then our ego gets in the way.. Oh well we do have unwarranted male dominance in many eastern societies and she picked the right issue to highlight but just Rush on the right and ACLU on the left sometimes, she took it a little too far and this whole idea of liberation without limitation is just unattractive and wrong.
What the fuck are you blathering about, you little cunt? Nothing offends me more than your stupidity.
wth…^^^^ you are the one that sound stupid…theres no need for name calling..stfu
She wasn’t telling you to eff yourself. she was basically pointing it as a sign of defiance against the rules of society or whatever. It was basically like a statement. If it was a ‘f you’, each and every one of the countries represented would be doing the same..
i loved it. felt bada**.
No, it was necessary in a way. People think Muslim women are all extremely submissive, and it’s also a fact that not all Muslim women are the same and some of them do react like that. It might be…unorthodox and I understand that in the Islamic tradition we’re not encouraged to be like that, but it’s just giving someone a finger to insult them, so a lot don’t find it problematic and since this is about making a ‘statement’, I can definitely see the merit of it.
Now you might be someone who thinks it’s ungraceful and distasteful, but it doesn’t change the fact that it’s how some Muslim women behave and feel and if that’s not something you like, too bad. I personally appreciated it.
An interesting video. However I would like to know the significance of the middle finger??
Specifically it means, “up yours” or stick your opinions/rules up your backside; ie I am going to ignore you and do my own thing.
I believe it originates from America where it is referred to as giving someone the bird or finger. It is essentially an indication of defiance
Or expression as the educated say
very inspired, but without that middle finger it would be better, my sister 🙂
No, it was necessary in a way. People think Muslim women are all extremely submissive, and it’s also a fact that not all Muslim women are the same and some of them do react like that. It might be…unorthodox and I understand that in the Islamic tradition we’re not encouraged to be like that, but it’s just giving someone a finger to insult them, so a lot don’t find it problematic and since this is about making a ‘statement’, I can definitely see the merit of it.
Just like you said, it is matter of perspective. Definition of what it means to be a good Muslim is very subjective and specially in west now, It has been ever evolving.. However, I find to point out that being submissive wife for example is not necessarily a BAD trait to have.. Just like being submissive to the will of Allah and being a good Muslim is not a good thing.. Even the concept of Hijab is submitting yourself to the commandant of Allah. However, It is the lack of balance where problem comes in.. You have men who think wife being submissive means that she is some sort of slave to them and that has given way to the idea that women can do whatever, whenever and they do not need to care about what their man thinks… It all boils down to learning and understanding our deen and May Allah give us Hidayat to do just that.. I am sure some women specially would find it baddA## like some sister put it and men are partially to be blamed for that but to me, Woman is more graceful and beautiful when she is fragile and act more lady like and to make a statement like that to me is just something good done with bad taste.. Again that is just my personal view and we all agree to disagree.. Rest Allah knows best
The entire video is great! I see it got a bit controversial because as usual everyone is choosing to focus on what didn’t suit their fancy although the message was beautifully and powerfully portrayed. It’s simple; with all the discussion that is forever surrounding what women wear regardless of the million other things her life and efforts comprise of, it is how we feel about all thy precious opinions which are always, always about what she wears, how she wears it, how she shouldn’t be wearing it etc. etc.
Uhm, men still gaze.. I’m “covered” to your standards, but that doesn’t stop them…
Stops them somewhat, that’s the point. If you don’t see the merit, that’s your opinion, but a lot of women (myself included)feel more comfortable with it so yeah.
“stops them somewhat” – thanks for proving my point; it’s not some fool-proof device that guarantees to work the way it “should” 100% of the time. Also, just because you and others feel comfortable with something, doesn’t mean it holds true “merit” lmfao =.= I feel comfortable with a teddy bear when I was little, doesn’t mean a toy is some form of protection against the actual *real* dangers of burglary, break-ins, thieves or murderers.
Oh, and for the record, these “hijab fashion” only existed in the mena and asian regions due to belligerent and hostile theocratic governments. You really can’t say shit to my own ancestors who protested against crap like this in their home country – many burning headscarves to show their resistance to oppression. Therefore, this video is just a pile of western garbage to appeal to those who live comfortable western lives – most likely why they don’t know what they’re talking about lol. It’s not done by those who had to actually live in these countries. This video only screams “help! I’m divorced from reality and trying to pass off two-dimensional narratives- that these have always been the clothing of all these different tribes of people! :D” No, hun. Just…. No. =_=”
Sorry, I did live in “those countries ” Syria to be exact and I totally disagree with you
Syria shouldn’t be considered one if you knew an ounce of history. It’s only been recently that there’s been foreign powers fighting a proxy war in the country, spreading to iraq, therefore power hungry islamists with an extreme sunni agenda could take advantage of the political vacuum created to spread their poisonous fundamentalism.
Haha!!! Learn your history
Yes, history of Syria before the war: https://www.facebook.com/pg/TOP.TN10/photos/?tab=album&album_id=228110797530316
The irony and audacity you have to tell me to “learn [my] history”, where you’re literally on a site that circle jerks one pompous, air-headed, ahisotric “muslim” girl from New York who wears her headscarf like an old Sikh woman from India ??? Lol, you have next to 0 shame; just KYS.
There’s no reason to get flustered at you though; you’re most likely just a paid islamist from qatar or saudi barbaria paid with that oil $$$ to spread filthy salafist shit ??? Just like this entire site.
Haters gonna hate..wanna be
… that comment legit doesn’t even make sense, you dumb cunt.
I usually luv yall work…but Where is the rest of Africa??
Yo, they didn’t even include indonesia. You know, the largest Muslim country haha or malaysia even. Se asian Muslims always getting ignored along with african muslims :/
I agree with you.. I was looking for Indonesiam hijab or Malaysian one but not sure what happened? Maybe she just forgot about millions of Muslims living in that part of the world.. To me personally, those Muslim women from Far east Asia are some of the best Muslim women around..
It seems like you all didn’t get the video in full. The concept of the video was tying the hijab to important historic events in the countries, decade by decade. Of course you need to edit in this case. (I hope I got all of these right)
Egypt in the 1910s: The Egypt Revolution
Kurdistan 1920s: Koçgiri rebellion
Palestine 1930s: Arab Revolte
Pakistan 1947: Creation of the country (hence the hymn)
Algeria 1950s: Algerian War
Yemen 1960s: Civil War
Iran 1970s: Islamic Revolution (and the video even addresses, that the Hijab was forced on women; in the backgroud you see Iranian students in the 70s without Hijab)
Lebanon 1980s: Israeli Invasion (since then, the Hijab became more common in Lebanon)
Afghanistan 1990s: Taliban take power (and force women into the burqa, maybe that’s why she takes it off in the video)
Iraq 2000s: US invade Iraq (that’s probably what the middle finger is about)
Syria: 2010s: Arab Spring and ongoing civil war
This video is specifically about hijab in the Middle East & North African region, there will probably be a part 2 iA on other parts of the world
Great job. Lots of spunk. The middle finger was necessary.
I love the entire video, especially the Iraqi bit… to me it is Iraq telling the Empire to go eff yourself ^_^
I liked the video as I am a fan of the 100 years of beauty videos I have seen. I didnt understand why she made a gun on the palestinian part..doesnt make sense.
I respect your beliefs. I just have a couple of questions. Why are women the only ones who wear the hijab? Why men don’t do it? And why is it that in Europe the most lecherous gazes are those that come from muslim men? Just asking.
Hijab is a way of life that includes far more than a woman wearing a scarf on her head. Essentially hijab is a code of conduct that includes men as well as women.
https://www.al-islam.org/hijab-muslim-womens-dress-islamic-or-cultural-sayyid-muhammad-rizvi/quran-and-hijab
1. Men do have a sort of hijab. Google it.
2. “Why is it that in Europe the most lecherous gazes are those that come from Muslim men?”
And how do you know that they’re Muslim? You din’t say anything about a ‘lecherous comment’, so that means you don’t communicate or observe these ‘men’ that you’re referring to, so just asking, but how do you know they’re Muslim specifically most of the time? A guy can be the most generic European looking person you can imagine, and he can be Muslim. In NYC, men cat-call all the time. Of all races and faiths, the overall problem is not respecting women really, and of-course ignorance plays a great part too.
I love this video. I think the hijab is very beautiful when not forced upon women by men. I have always wanted to wear one but don’t because it is not my culture nor my religion and I think how upset I get at people wearing native head dresses and not understanding the significance of them, so I admire the hijab and think they are pretty but don’t wear them.
I don’t care about the middle finger, I think it worked.
The person who tells her that she was doing fine until she gave the finger is basically saying that what she does with her body is anything at all to do with him which it’s not.
everybody’s missing the point over the longest finger on this girl’s hand.
Shouldn’t the last 2 headscarfs have a matching suicide vest?
I kinda liked the middle finger. It represents defiance and shows that Muslim women are not just complacent to all the political drama that goes on around them. If it comes as a shock then it means it challenged your perception of hijab-clad women being submissive.
Fuck Iran in 1990s or what was the finger for?
It’s such a shame that you chose to include the Afghan veil and the Iranian one. Since both of those were implemented on the entire population by force, it is reasonable to call them a symbol of repression. You’re so interested in defending the scarf/veil that you have defended it in moments when it is by all accounts indefensible. How many Iranian women were shot and killed in the 1970’s? How many Afghan women were murdered by the Taliban? Have you considered this at all? At that time, women who refused to wear it faced imprisonment, or death. Recognise the realities of history, the good and the bad. Then maybe you’ll put together something that can truly change perspectives.
Hummmmm, well, that is not a Yemeni (Sana’ni) sitara…looked like a dorm-room hippie tapestry thrown over a niqab…and I am pretty sure that Afghani “burqa” was just a sheet with a doilie sewed to it… kinda looked like what non-Muslims throw togeather to make semi-racist Halloween costumes.
westernized muslims claiming the kind of shit in this video, and air-headed white westerners are one of the same, in case it wasn’t obvious enough
Not sure I understand your comment. My comment was about the inaccuracies in the “traditional clothing” depicted in the video.
That’s my point. They’re not traditional to those who know the histories of these places, and why women wear some of those garbage in some of those countries (like afghanistan, really? do they think their audience is born yesterday to believe that women actually choose to wear shit that even restricts how well they see?) It’s funny how “traditional” to these western “muslims” essentially just means forced upon a certain demographic of society post U.S and British intervention in certain regions of the world (i.e. Iran and Afghanistan). Even further back through the 1900s women in society in a lot of arab countries weren’t islamized, because GCC countries weren’t brainwashing majority muslim countries through their oil-funded influences as yet.
It’s just a feel-good circle jerk video created by so-called western “muslims” to portray their ahistorical utopian dreamt up world of “hijab fashion” allegedly 100 years ago that didn’t even exist lmfao
Lllloooolll!!!!