France Says Bye-Bye to the Burka
In an effort to avoid becoming the next hotspot for Islamic extremists subjugating their wives, France has banned the burka. Per IndyPosted.com the vote by French Parliment was 246 to 1–who was the “1″? The law will become reality next spring and while not every Muslim woman wears a burka, the decision affects France’s second largest religion with an estimated 5 million adherents, according to CNN.
Women caught wearing the burka in public will be fined 150 Euros and hubbies forcing their wives to wear a burka can result in a year in jail (can you imagine the guy who gets thrown in with murderers and thieves having to act tough and say, “Yeah, I made my bitch wear a burka in public”).
It seems France has lost its senses. How ridiculous to react to an extreme with an extreme? You can’t tell people what to wear?! …Well, sort of, but usually it is the reverse when the government bans nudity or skimpy clothing. The government of France is actually telling women to take their clothes off or else.
I sympathize with getting rid of the burka, but this is not the way to do it. If France told my wife she couldn’t wear a burka if she felt like it I would throw one on myself in protest. We all understand in the West that the burka is nonsense, a reaction to women’s bodies because men in the Middle East apparently can’t control themselves–but you can’t ban it. It will only make the Islam fringe stronger and instead of this ban getting rid of the radical elements of Muslim society it is most likely going to attract the nuts who like to blow themselves up.
I do agree with a fine or jail time in relation to domestic abuse. This could include a forceful husband making his wife wear clothing she does not want to wear (how did these women get so submissive? My wife tells me what to wear). It’s going to be hard to prove it is actual abuse if there is no physical act of violence, only a use of religion for the sake of control. If we’re going to punish a controlling religous mindset then let’s go after the Pope too.
If muslims were mad at Terry Jones for wanting to burn the Koran, it will be interesting to see the reaction to this news.
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Luckily, nothing bad has happened yet (that I have heard of). The French, though I often despise their bullheadedness, in this case, I admire it.
As a Canadian citizen, I have been through many cases where the burka has actually caused a bigger divide and cultural isolation among people. A 7 year old girl who was playing soccer was insistent on wearing her hijab (despite it being against the dress code). And may I ask again what is sexually provocative about a 7 year old that must be covered? Anyway, through several legal battles, she was allowed, despite it still being a hazard as it covered her side vision. What caused the most issue for me is, if I wanted to wear my Spider-Man mask, or some kind of head/face gear that I found of certain value, I would not be allowed. A double standard towards citizens for some reason is allowed when it’s the other way around.
The concept of white guilt can’t last forever; nor should it serve to guide policies. How I can feel guilt over something I have no control over? Most of these women will never speak up about domestic violence, sadly enough, because its not something to speak about. Its hard to explain, its very similar to the Eastern European mind set. It’s just something that happens.
I think the most important thing to regard about France is that they are doing this less to help the women but more so to preserve their own culture. If one thing I admire, is that they have a strong sense of national identity, the French DEFINE their culture, not let others do it for them. As an immigrant myself (I moved to Canada 9 years ago), is I understand that I want to incorporate my cultural values but never forgetting that I live in Canada now, and if there are certain values I must either accept them or “go back home to my country”. I have successfully done it. My values as a Russian are my own but I never force them upon others nor force others to accept them.
“how did these women get so submissive? My wife tells me what to wear.” <— I love that!
It’s a culture of oppression and unhealthy conditioning. Far too often women wear burkas out of fear, subjugation, submission. They cannot “choose” to not wear them, as they are psychologically/emotionally shackled to them.