Head Covers divide Muslims

Some believe emphasis on scarf is restrictive, others a sign of piety.
by Caryle Murphy, Washington Post.

Washington - Sixth-grade teacher Amaarah DeCuir has worn head covering since beoming a Muslim five years ago. "I wear it because I'm supposed to," she said. "I believe my religion states women are to cover their body except for face, hands and feet."

About the same time, communications specialist Asma Ramadan stopped wearing her head scarf. Ramadan, whose tightly coiled tresses cascade over her shoulders, believes Islam's command for modesty is discharged by a woman's behavior, by "carrying herself as a lady."

DeCuir, 27, and Ramadan, 26, represent dueling forces tugging at Islam's traditions.

And nowhere is that tug of war more evident than in the robust debate over whether the hijab, the Islamic head covering, is mandatory. Though many young Muslims don the scarf, and its acceptance in the workplace has grown, the hijab is sometimes a division within the Muslim community.

As Muslims begin celebrating the holy fasting month of Ramadan, this debate illustrates the diversity of views within Islam, with some Muslims concerned that there's been a misplaced emphasis on the scarf as an indicator of personal piety and communal identity.

"Any time something physical rather than someone's behavior becomes the basis for judgment, there is a lot of danger," said Manal Omar, 24, director of development at the Washington-based American Muslim Council.

Most of the largely male Islamic jurists interpret the Koran as mandating a head covering for women even though Islam's holy book does not explicitly state this.

Hijab "is part of the protection of the family and family values," said Taha Jabir Al Alwani, chairman of the Fiqh Council of North America, an Islamic law body. "We don't like to see in society any woman to show herself in a way that attracts husbands of other wives."

"For some people, if you cover your head you're ignorant, and for others, if you do not cover your head you are outside Islam," said Sharifa Alkhateeb, vice-president of the North American Council for Muslim Women, who wears a head scarf but has not forced her three daughters to follow suit. "We are trying to take women beyond that whole discussion."