I would like to comment on Sufia Khalid’s recent column, “Girls won’t get anywhere until they stop dressing as bimbos” (March 28, p.7). I feel it necessary to point out that wearing a hijab in a country such as America takes on a drastically different meaning than wearing it in some Middle Eastern countries. Here, we enjoy the freedom of personal expression, and thus making the decision to wear a hijab in order to combat rampant materialism, peoples’ shallow impressions and the degradation of women can indeed be seen as a declaration of female liberation. I commend Khalid for making this personal statement, as the objectification of women in our culture bothers me as well, and I lament the fact that our culture’s view of women makes it necessary for some girls to cover their body in order to feel dignified.

However, in certain areas of the Islamic world, women do not have the choice of wearing the hijab. They are forced to wear it, and can be shunned by their community if they do not. While it is not up to me to pass judgment on the morality of this specific cultural practice, it is prudent to remember that what may be seen as a symbol of freedom in one culture does not necessarily have the same connotation the world over, and that while choosing to wear a hijab in America may indeed signify empowerment and personal liberation, in an Islamic country it could still cause feelings of degradation for a woman.

Matt Janoska CAS ’09