Reply to Muslim women speak out against the hijab as an element of political Islam

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]

The Quran's mandate to lower one's gaze applied to both men and women. Since there is also a mandate to cover adornments, ornaments, and beauty, the hijab helps women to meet this requirement. Hair may indeed be worn to impress bosses or colleagues or peers, or it may be used to seduce. The point is that it not be used to make any impression or point because it distracts us and others from God and encourages a focus on egotistical interests. It needn't be used to seduce, but in many cases it has been. It suffices that it is often used in ways that take us farther away from God. This is often true with many physical aspects of our body. A very athletic woman who desires to wear shorts to show off her athletic legs, only to be admired by her workout group is still placing importance on egotistical interests based on appearance or beauty. This is still not modesty.

Islam never purported to advance linear equality between men and women. Islam advances justice between men and women to promote a moral society. Men ARE different from women. As such, their rights and responsibilities will differ. Western society deems this shameful because it can only see justice as based on linear equality. One can not evaluate Islamic guidelines and law on western ideology; they are based on entirely different principles.

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[b]I don't understand why a woman's hair is "distracting" but a man's hair is not. What if she cuts it short like a man? [/b]

Men often cut their hair in "distracting" fashions. You will tell me that many men get a standard cut. And I will answer that many men don't get the standard cut (my son even cares about where he gets his standard cut). Going further, isn't any type of men's cut about vanity, and the least "egotistical" route would be for men to grow their hair out and forswear combs? Where do you draw the line? You can't. So what's good for the goose is good for the gander: if all women have to cover because some women style their hair, then all men should have to cover too, following the same principles of prevention.

One could argue that, back in Arabia in 700AD, men wore turbans, thereby preventing men's hair from "distracting" anybody. But following those lines of argument, things got easier for men and harder for women.

What about the rest of that verse in the Quran, which says not to show adornments "except that which normally show"? Doesn't hair normally show? Whose standards of hair are the reference point here? Back in 700AD, many women didn't veil, particularly women doing manual labor.[/quote]

Who knows, but maybe it stems from the fact that women wear their hair long and do more to beautify their hair than men do. Generally speaking. Lets not bring up every woman who doesn't fit this generality or every  man who doesn't either. We are speaking in general terms. Why are women's breasts required to be covered up but not mens? [/quote]

Almost every man understands that his hair sends a message. That message might be "company man" or "I'm cool" or "I'm edgy" or "my grey-haired ponytail identifies me as a cool but aging dude" or even my man-bun and beard identify me as a hipster with all the hipster values you know that entails." Please!

Show me a man who doesn't care how his hair looks, whether conservative or hipster man-bun, and that's a rare bird indeed. You talk about "using" hair as manifestations of egotism or even to attract members of the other sex, but men are equally guilty.

Breasts are reproductive and they are also clear gender markers.[/quote]

Hair is not a gender marker? For thousands of years women have worn their hair much longer than men and it has always been a gender identifier.
"What's good for the goose is good for the gander" is typical western perspective. Problem is, it isn't in Islam. Islam says men and women ARE different. As such, there will be some differences in their rights and privileges they are afforded by God. A great many Muslim women accept this. Maybe you simply need to come to terms with this.[/quote]

I think most of us have come to terms with hijab and will even defend your right to veil. However, we can still wonder and ask questions here about standards of modesty that ask women to enforce men's purity, and that don't also require modesty in other aspects of living such as cars, houses, jewelry, et cetera. These questions have been raised, but the answers here have been unsatisfactory (to many here, it would seem) and in fact your answers have digressed into Western women's athletic gear and STDs. That's why you're seeing pushback. I suppose you, too, will need to come to terms with this.[/quote]
You're giving her "pushback" because you don't really want to be convinced, you have your position, and you're standing by it.  That's fine, but then don't pretend there's an answer in the world that could have satisfied you.  You're acting like a five-year old who keeps getting more and more reasons why he can't have ice cream before dinner only to keep saying "but whyyyyy?  whyyyyyy? you haven't convinced me!"[/quote]

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