Poll States More People Think Islam Is Liberating For Women

Uh... okay. Personally, I'd prefer to be able to wear whatever I wanted without society enforcing sexual pressure. But whatever, you guys. Just stay away from me.

My mother had a traditionalist Muslim guy spit on her once, because she was wearing shorts and a T-shirt in the supermarket. person.

But we are suppressed in the same way-

women in America (or the UK) are expected to dress, well, normally. We are expected to look nice and not wear anything crazy.

I have heard the argument that the pressures to dress a certain way in Islamic culture is freeing, and I buy it. I think though, that it doesn't matter what we think. It only really matters what they think, because culture is relative.

When actual Islamic women start calling out to stop and for help from us to help them stop, we can go help. But it seems that they are ok with it for now.

If it was a CHOICE to wear the burka then I wouldn't care. I think it is just as bad to make it illegal to wear the burka as it is to force it.

Also, if ALL THE OTHER oppressive factors of the religion were gone then again it wouldn't matter.

actually Georgia has a point here.. how many female corporate officers do you see with a feminine look? they wear basically mens suits or severely tailored mens suits with a below the knee acceptable skirt. They usually have short haircuts; like having long hair somehow makes them 'less'.
Its only been recent that women in the U.S. Airforce could be fighter pilots; women are still non-combatants in conflicts; where I work few supervisory staff are women; even when we go out. If I wear jeans and a nice top its 'okay' but if I wear a mini and a low cut top I am a tramp; womens clothes ares still dictated by men.

Why do you care so much? They're just clothes. I occasionally wonder if someone is cold, but that's about it.

I would go into the the patriarchy and societal expectations, but I am so tired that I wouldn't make sense. Stupid insomnia.

I think people should wear what they want, as long as their naughtier bits are covered. If I see someone out that's wearing something revealing, I usually think to myself "Wow, I wish I had the confidence to wear that."

I feel sorry for those women.

So don't look at them. Obviously they like the way they look, and as long as they're not flashing anything pornographic they don't have an obligation to dress the way you would like them to.

I think self-respect and self-confidence go hand in hand, personally.

You can get arrested for wearing a g-string in public - indecent exposure. You can't get arrested for wearing a tube top if you're overweight.

And quite a few things are deemed inappropriate by "society" - homosexuals walking down the street holding hands, for instance. Should they feel ashamed of themselves because somebody else doesn't like what they see? No.

And unless the overweight tube-top wearing woman was applying for a job, I don't see a problem with her wearing what she likes. No one says you have to like it - but your opinion is yours, and should not dictate what other people are required to do.

If my husband were to tell me to cover up to keep other men from looking at me, I'd laugh in his face. He doesn't own me. I'm not his property. And if other men want to take a peek, they're free to do so. That's as close to me as they're ever going to get. My husband trusts me and knows that I'm loyal. It's good enough for him. In fact, it's an ego boost to him when we go out and someone checks me out. He says to himself "That's right, she's with me."

I have a very high self esteem and I wear 'trashy' clothes sometimes; I wear everything from jeans and tee's to leather mini's and corsets. What I wear is no ones business but my own.
ITs not about 'self respect' its about someone else thinking they have the right to define my wardrobe for me. Again.. its all about control.

I've spoken with Muslim women who have told me they like wearing the burka (and still do here in the us) because it means something to them. To some of them, it doesn't represent oppression, it represents liberation and humility. If they want to do that, that's fine. And unless Muslim women start saying "I am oppressed, help me!!" we have no right to judge their culture. The Muslim culture is really vibrant where i live, and I know a lot of women who wear it because they want to. Who am I to tell them, "Oh, you are so oppressed, you're culture is so awful, let me dress you the way I want to dress you......"

Let me begin this by saying that I am not referring to anyone in this forum...

I HATE bleeding hearts who get on a cause before they learn anything about it and fight for something they know nothing about. That's so, "I saw it on Oprah-esque."

You've got a good point Georgia. .