O-mama - Opinionated Moms

The Globe and Mail

As of this week, the French government has a new law banning the head-to-toe burqa worn by some Muslim women. French President, Nicholas Sarkozy said of the burqa, "It's a sign of enslavement….we cannot accept in our country women imprisoned behind a mask, deprived of all social life of their identity.” Another member of parliament, Jacques Myard, said "the face is a dignity of a person. The face is your passport...so, when you refuse me to see you, I am a victim."

Women caught wearing one will be fined $200 and men forcing a woman to wear one will pay $43,000. Some Muslim women in France, however, like wearing the burqa and have said that they will continue to do so, even if it means breaking the new law. One woman said, ”I will under no circumstances stop wearing my veil.”

Here, in the United States, Edina Lekovic, director of policy and programming for the Muslim Public Affairs Council said, "The vast majority of Muslim women I know are wholly against burqas or niqabs because they have no religious foundation in the Quran. They’re based on a hyper-strict interpretation of the Quran, not on what it says in the text at all. That said, they uniformly oppose the French government’s decision to ban them because it sends a completely counterproductive message to French Muslims and French society. Banning burqas – just like banning books – will only make them more popular as a symbol of resistance. If the goal is to encourage integration of Muslim immigrants into French society, creating opportunities for participation and empowerment is the answer, not excluding and fining people based on how they dress."

MOMism: "I want to talk to you face-to-face." Have you ever told your child to pull their hair back, so you could see their beautiful face? For whatever reason, our kids hide their faces with hair - not sure if it is cool or they're insecure...or, if they just think their hair should speak for itself?! (If you had feathers during the 80's, you might have unique insight?) We teach our kids that when they have something important to say, to say it to someone's face. Not in a text. Not in an email. Not even over the phone. There is definitely something important to us about seeing someone's face when we are talking to them. It's more personal and respectful, in our culture.

But, not in others. It's considered more modest and more conservative to cover one's face. On some level, moms get that...we don't let our girls wear shorts that are too short or our boys walk out of the house with their undies showing because their pants are drooping around their tush. It's modesty. We like modesty.  So, what's the biggie about "over" dressing? Nothing. It's hiding your face that is controversial. Some consider it an act of devotion to their conservative traditions (covering of the face is not a religious requirement), but, the truth is, it's a social issue. In Islamic cultures and Middle Eastern society, it is socially acceptable to wear head-to-toe coverings. In France, however, it's considered both oppressive to women and a security threat. It is socially unacceptable. After all, France is the country that believes in fine wine and romance. The French are famous for chic fashion, french kissing, cheese and topless beaches - c'est la vie ("that's life") in France.

So, this is really a cultural issue, not a religious one. It's about assimilating into French culture and their society. MAMAs - if we go into a foreign country, we should respect their cultural nuances (in Thailand, you don't shake hands...in a Muslim country, you cover your head with a scarf...in Spain, you don't shout at the waiter in English, it doesn't make him understand you better...when in Rome, you do as the Romans do, right?) - it's just nice manners. So now, covering your face (and your boobs) is a faux pas in France!

As for the safety issue, we have monitors and facial recognition screeners in the USA. We live in an open society (not topless, but transparent) - we get frisked at airports, our bags searched at stadiums and we have dress codes at school, at restaurants, in places of business, etc.  We like to look at people in the eye.  See the full expression of their face when we are talking to them. (Otherwise, how would we know when our kids were smirking at us and sassing us silently?) We are skeptical about too much clothing or too little clothing. If someone is wearing a winter coat in the summer, it's a red flag. Maybe they are hiding something?  Maybe they get a chill easily?  If someone is wearing a ski mask, they should be hitting the slopes - not getting on an airplane or walking into a bank, right?  MAMAs teach our kids to dress appropriately for the situation - no tube top to grandmas, and get your hair out of your face.

So MAMAs, to take people at face value, do we need to see their face? Is this an infringement on personal freedom or French values? What's your opinion about the new burqa ban in France?