The debate over multi-culturalism is back in the news ‘cross the pond, in the land of the pickled:
An Indian origin Muslim teaching assistant in west Yorkshire, suspended earlier for refusing to remove her veil during school hours, has now been dismissed from the job.[link]
Aishah Azmi, 24, lost a discrimination and harassment case at an employment tribunal last month, and saw support collapse among parents at Headfield Church of England junior school in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, over what was seen as an uncompromising stand.[link]
That “lost the support of parents”-angle is extra interesting, considering
The school where Azmi was teaching had 530 students, aged seven to 11, and 92 percent were Muslim, mainly from India and Pakistan.[link]
A bit of backstory:
Mrs Azmi, who was awarded £1,000 by the tribunal in Leeds because of mishandled disciplinary processes, was dismissed yesterday after a hearing at the school. She started work a year ago but was suspended in the spring when she refused a male teacher’s request that she remove the veil when helping children in her role as a bilingual support assistant.[link]
This latest controversy comes on the heels of a column written by Former Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, which provoked international debate about veiling and identity:
Straw wrote in a newspaper column last month that he asks women who visit his district office wearing veils that cover almost their entire face to remove the garment when they meet with him…
He said the piece he published in the Lancashire Evening Telegraph newspaper had been thoughtful and respectful, and that he had never challenged women’s right to wear a veil.
He emphasized that he only requested — and never demanded — that women remove the veils in his office and said he did not support banning the coverings.
He said those living in Britain should have a stronger sense of shared identity based on the country’s democratic values.[link]
Azmi was asked to consider modifying her stance:
Mrs Azmi, who made her stand after taking advice from an imam in Dewsbury, was urged to compromise last month by the local Labour MP Shahid Malik.[link]
Was this really about religious intolerance? Malik doesn’t think so:
“I’m disappointed that a compromise could not be reached. But while I would absolutely defend her right to wear the veil in society, it’s very clear that her wearing it in the classroom setting inhibits her ability to support children. This is not about religion.”[link]
The bottom line is you are SOL if you are a garden variety agnostic/atheist if you want to express your “individuality” in garb or hair in a workplace environment. Ironic that a secular culture offers no protection to those who do not claim any religious sanction for their attire.
Lebanese woman in Sydney designs a Burquini for Muslim lifeguards Burqa +bikini= burquini
http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IEW20061127100435&Title=World&Topic=0&?headline=Burqa+bikini~=~Burqini~for~Muslim~women
well… I dunno if religion is about individual expression, its actually closer to the opposite, no? if you’re secular, you’re not compelled to wear anything the way a person’s religious beliefs might compel the hijab. And the work place might not feel so neutral if you’re asked to check your belief system at the door and don the socially acceptable worldview from 9-5.
It’s hard to tease out the distinction between a person sincerely following their faith and someone who just wants to cause a rukus. We should figureo out a way to respect the former and force blue hats on the latter.
You might definitely be ordered to “check your your belief system at the door” from 9-5… or should pharmacists be allowed to decline filling prescriptions of birth control/abortion drugs because their personal faith prohibits the use of such medications (as has happened recently) ? Nobody is forced to work in an environment that collides with their personal faith/philosophies. But if they do choose to work in such an environment, then they ought to accept what compromises need to be made.
W-what?
How would this even work? A t-shirt saying “C’mon you guys, God isn’t real”? Cutting your hair a specific way to emphasize the unknowability of any spiritual force in the universe?
(Not trying to cause a fight, just genuinely confused about the mechanics of this…)
3 in a row? Is this becoming Anna’s personal blog?
look, women weren’t professionals during the heyday of the formulation of islamic customs re: dress. the messed up thing is to take the dress of secluded women out into the social work world where candid interaction within prescribed boundaries which you can’t control (hey, i wish i could dres down in all workplaces!) dominate. it is fine to where the niqab, but it is a bit much to have your cake & eat it too. what next? demands for female only wings of office buildings so that women can keep their religion and occupational self-worth intact?
How about a shaved head and a full face tattoo with a half dozen lip piercings ? I can see that going down well at a corporate law firm 🙂
perhaps there’s a difference between personal practice and imposing values on others? would you then tell me that my hijab is oppressive to you…? you’re worried of what I might be hiding in that bun?
Have you seen Pretty Persuasion? Hijabi sneaks in a gun into school via headscarf… anyway, I think the two are pretty easily distinguishable. Nothing in the job description of a school teacher precludes hijab whereas a pharmacist is not in a position to question the doctor-patient relationship.
But I’ll take your point that we are compelled to check aspects of our personal selves at the revolving door. My point was simply that respecting religousness might warrant some leeway here.
sorry for the Pretty Persuasion spoiler 🙁
Well sure, but honestly even non-regulation pleated Dockers would probably get you fired at a corporate law firm 😉
But I see what you’re saying.
But this is mostly a “safety in numbers” effect, isn’t it? I have a feeling people who wore turbans weren’t exactly well-respected before there was a large Sikh community in the West. It’s like “guy doing odd behavior X” = “weird dude”, but “odd behavior X done by lots of people” = “distinct subculture”. That’s not unique to religion though. Lots of crazy stuff becomes socially acceptable because many people do it — just look at the fauxhawk.
So what you need to do is break facial tattoos into the mainstream, Vikram…
Actually this story might actually make people worry that something is hidden…:
Would it be unacceptable for that store to disallow entry to people who have their faces covered ?
Would you feel comfortable if your child went to a school that had all its male teachers wearing full face black ski masks and gloves when they taught classes ?
Hell, I’d be happy if I can get some religious reason to wear jeans and sneakers all week… 🙂
down with pleated pants and tyrannical ties.
“Would you feel comfortable if your child went to a school that had all its male teachers wearing full face black ski masks and gloves when they taught classes?”
That was funny 🙂 I just smiled imagining the scene. It can be made into a nice episode for lampooning religion in shows like the John Stewart Show.
Regards, Aninda
Hey, I fully intend to enroll my kids in the Cobra Commander School of Etiquette.
of course! who would let their kids ski without protection?
I haven’t read through all the comments, but what I don’t understand is why Muslims don’t realize that Islam itself allows for relaxation of purdah in various sitations, work being one of them. Anyway, it seems to me the debate is a bit extreme on both sides.
Doesn’t that seem to be the case in any controversy or conflict, religious or not?
Lots of Muslims do. In fact, the Muslims at the school in question apparently weren’t enamored of this one woman’s position on the issue.
DestroNeal you idiot! That’s classifed information!! Now GI Joe will be able to resist the weather dominator!!Does her increased participation bother you? Do you ask this question when Vinod or Sajit blog, since they do so even less often than she does? When Siddhartha had three posts in a row, did you notice or care?
Uh…uh…. I meant Mum-Ra’s Academy of Design!
St Paul talks about women covering their hair. If you visit Mallu land, one finds a significant number of women covering their hair. But this is rare today in the churches in the west – was not so in earlier eras. I guess it is a custom that has its roots in middle eastern tradition.
As Little Johnny says ‘the hijab is confronting’ – and I agree. It is confronting the way a bikini would be at the workplace. Every time I see a woman who wears the hijab / niqab I shake my head in vigorous disapproval and I make sure that they see it.
Has anyone considered filing a harassment suit against the hijab / niqab wearer. If a bloke can be charged for looking in an inappropriate manner, can a woman be charged for wearing this dress. Any lawyers?
Such a nuisance. All these dumb muslim women (and men) wearing the hijab and niqab are making life difficult for black folks like myself. As they say in Oz, if you are a Leb, you are trouble.
I love the white mundu – does not mean that I wear it to the workplace. Although it is darn fine attire for the aussie summer.
If a hijab wearing woman is harassed (not sexually) is she asking for it ?
On a personal front (sample size of 3) – muslim women who wear the full battle dress are the wild ones in bed.
Little Johnny – John Howard (PM Australia) Mundu – wrap around worn around the waist by men and women in Kerala.
Desi Aussie, with your inarticulate ignorance and my penchant for cliched expressions we can defeat the
GI JoeMuslims and together rule the world!Somewhere in the bowels of an undisclosed location, Ann Coulter just felt a sharp, shooting pain…
Gasp How do you know about Cobra Island?? Ann Coulter’s shooting pain in her bowels can mean only one thing: her transformation is now complete! (Or that she’s about to put the finishing touches on a new column.)
Conformity may be very much needed for the proper execution of work at hand. But there is a whole other dimension to this than simple worklace requirements. It is called natural, human ambition, and a very normal desire to get recognized and promoted at work. You are not going to get far in your chosen career if you remain a nonconformist – period!
Mainstreaming at work is not about selling out, folks. It is about leading a balanced life in which personal beliefs are nicely counterbalanced by other human urges such as recognition and rewards. Someday all of you will have other mouths to feed, other bodies to clothe and other souls to nourish. Some of you have these problems already. When you do, please leave the niqabs, saris and kurtas at home Mon-Fri, unless of course you live in countries where the aforementioned are common attire.
to 78 — i agree wholly with your advice. but i dunno if it would be fair to turn it into policy.
The problem is when some people’s personal beliefs become a sense of entitlement around which everything and everyone else must revolve.
desi aussie:
Do you vigorously shake your head at Sikh men, Jews wearing skull caps, nuns, Hindus wearing the kumkum/tilak?
Tosser.
Most people do conform to work attire requirements and you will probably find very few muslims who agree with this nitwit woman’s stance. If the school allowed her to wear a niqab at work they would have to allow others to do so too which could lead to a worst case scenario of having a majority of niqabi teachers (which is possible since 90% of the students are muslims). This is totally unacceptable in a teaching environment especially since the students are so young and still developing non verbal communication skills.
I completely agree with the board’s decision to fire Miss Aishah Azmi. Wearing the veil/hijab/niqab is about personal choice, but if your personal choice renders you incapable of properly performing your work, then you’re not fit for that job and you must go. As Anne Applebaum says in this article on Slate.com
kali billi
Jack Straw has every right to request women to take off their veils when they come to meet him in surgery, and they are equally free to turn down his request. Jack Straw feels that seeing the it will aid him in better understanding and helping his constituents. He’d clearly stated in interviews that he always makes the request after ensuring a female member of his staff is present and his constituents are free to turn down his request though none have refused so far. [Link]
Its also interesting to note that Miss Azmi did not wear the veil when she was interviewed for the post, and her reaction when she was quizzed about it on the BBC is just priceless. [Video Link]
Truly priceless… one doesn’t have to see her face to see her “oh-damn-I-forgot-about-that” expression. Something reeks of a setup. Maybe she was just bored with the job and planned to leave anyway. This way she can claim “discrimination” and get a payout.
look, in my religion–Manjuism–the sacred texts explain that if enough women wear the veil/hijab/niqab, a giant tarantuala will eat the earth. you may think this silly, but it’s a matter of faith.
therefore, i’ve decided to ban the wearing of the veil/hijab/niqab in my business, as is my (exiled) constitutional right…freedom of religion, association, and property. Please respect my religiousness and don’t impose by force your morality on me.
Bengali
Jewish men wearing skull caps – yes. I glare at them. Most recently we had an incident where a bunch of sports fans ripped the skull cap of a Jewish bloke. No criminal charges were laid 🙂 Nuns – I letch at them brazenly. Some of them are hot. Sikh men – Have not seen a Sardar in months now. A raised eyebrow only.
My annoyance is with folks displaying religious symbols in public. Keeping your religion at home makes for peaceful co-existence. My beliefs include nudism but coz it is offensive to most people I am a nudist at home not in public. Similarly the full battle dress of the muslim women is offensive and confronting.
Not something new. Bollywood characters often use the burka to sneak past police or into hostels.