German state bans 'Grace Kelly' hijab

North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany's most populous state, has taken it's ban on a school teacher wearing the hijab a stage further.

She had suggested as a compromise that she wore it in the style of Grace Kelly from the 1955 movie To Catch a Thief. This was rejected, as the court ruled that Maryam Brigitte Weiss's intent was religious rather than stylistic.

This is strange not least because to rule out articles of clothing on the basis of the intention of the wearer is to open up other clothing to the same ban. Muslim women also cover their arms for religious reasons. Are they to be banned from blouses and jumpers too?

This is why the argument about religious 'symbols' is false when it comes to the headscarf. It's not like a pin badge on your shirt, and isn't unique to just one faith or indeed faith at all. In other words, you can wear an item of clothing if you're not a Muslim, but if you are, it's banned. I'm sorry, but that's just bad law.

Comments

[Safi]

May Allah help our Muslim brothers and sisters to practice Islam freely!

This is unbelievably ridiculous.

[Frank J Dougan]

The reason that muslim women have to cover all in Islamic nations is because muslim men are barbarians

[AJ]

"In other words, you can wear an item of clothing if you're not a Muslim, but if you are, it's banned. I'm sorry, but that's just bad law."

Where does it say non muslims are allowed to wear it, but muslims are not?

Oh it doesnt.

[Alan Clayton]

Political correctness gone berserk. A Christian lassie was banned for wearing a chastity ring a few weeks ago.These people should get off their space ships.

[joe90]

This is political correctness gone mad!

Here are a few images of barbaric men-folk forcing their womenfolk to cover up -
The Holy Family Alone or with Angels
Biblical Art on the WWW

Here is an actual image and proof of the horrors of forcing women to dress up like western nuns -
Palestinian Christian
Wikipedia

Just for the fun of it -
Palestinian Heritage Foundation

And here is a western buisness man spreading racist filth, because that's his job - he has to dress in the uniform of a bank manager otherwise ignorant racists wouldn't follow his orders -
Gang crime 'due to absent dads'
BBC
21 Aug 2007

[Osama]

"If headscarves are banned for employees who work at the desk at city services in order to guarantee neutrality of services, then we demand that no Christmas trees be set up in city buildings and that no Easter eggs be given out." Antwerp trade union representative Badia Miri said this on Wednesday in the Gazet van Antwerpen.

http://www.islamophobia-watch.com/islamophobia-watch/2007/8/22/muslims-want-ban-on-easter-eggs.html

[joe90]

More on Easter egg ban
Islamophobia Watch
posted by the indefatiguable Martin Sullivan
24 Aug 2007

Remember the "Muslims want ban on Easter eggs" nonsense from Belgium? Here's Diana West's take on this ridiculous, concocted story:

"Clearly, Antwerp's Muslim population (or some sizable portion thereof) rejects the right of the native Christian culture to express itself in terms of its traditional symbols. But what does it mean if post-Christian Antwerp accedes to this Muslim 'demand'?" Well, of course, "it will mean that another outpost of the West will have agreed to strip itself of the defining symbols of its own identity"!

Washington Times, 24 August 2007

Eh ?

[aineliva]

Doesn't Grace Kelly look amazing.

Yes there was a time, back in the late fifties, early sixties, that women even in small-town Ireland were sporting their headscarves in this fashion; remember it well. Very useful for keeping hair from getting tangled in the wind, and keeping the neck warm in winter winds.

But then we were free to put it on...... and take it off as we (women) deemed necessary, and there was no male interference in that decision.

[aineliva]

Joe? why do you copy posts from other blogs, as comments on this blog?

Anyway, ridiculous or not, the response is justified. If I even thought that anyone was attempting to ban my Christmas Tree or my Annual Chocolate Egg feast I'd be up in arms about it make no mistake.

As far as I am aware, despite alarm bells being rung for quite some time now, there is an attack on Christian life, and symbols and churches all over the Muslim world.

Oh and please don't quote me the Malaysian: God and the Ciggie cartoon. Anyone who knows anything about Malaysia's press knows that they are muzzled. The Christians themselves are happy with the apology given, but the Malaysian government's ban is all for show.

They (Malaysian Government) would be far better off displaying their supposed multi-faith credentials by putting a stop to the destruction of Hindu temples and non-islamic places of worship, rather than this feeble attempt at banning a newspaper from publishing for a month.

Oh and by the way. In most Catholic churches it is customary for women to wear a head-covering, however, in no instance that I know of, has a women been "forced" to wear a head covering. It is the element of force that is objected to, not the wearing of anything.

[aineliva]

My personal experience of the "clothing and religion" issue is this. At my convent school, we were constantly reminded that being dressed in a way that uncovered large swathes of flesh, legs, arms, faces, (oh and it was the 60's, bikinis had just emerged though you'd never recognise them now compared to the present pieces of string) was an invitation to sin.

And we were left in no doubt as to who we were inviting.

So the religious argument seems to be (nothing new here) that men cannot hold their sexual urges in check. Again we have the situation where women are asked to take responsibility for others. If that is the religious argument, I do wonder what happens when men see naked Christmas Trees or unwrapped Easter Eggs.

The mind boggles.