Loading ...Forcing a Woman to Take Her Clothes Off in Public is Never OK
BY: Nisreen Eadeh/Staff Writer
Footage of a Muslim woman being forced to remove her “burkini” by French police has gone viral, provoking outrage globally from women and men. This month, sixteen French cities banned the burkini, which is nothing more than a looser fitting wetsuit, from being worn on public beaches.
The ban was put in place in response to the tragic terrorist attacks that have taken place in France this past year. In July, the French Riviera was the site of an attack that killed over 70 people, 30 of whom were Muslim. These attacks have provoked a ruling that Muslim women’s beachwear is a symbol of “Islamic extremism.”
The ruling in Cannes, France states: “Beachwear that ostentatiously displays religious affiliation, when France and places of worship are currently the target of terrorist attacks, is liable to create risks of disrupting public order.”
The ordinance is in effect until August 31 and comes with a $42 fine if caught wearing the burkini. The mayor of Cannes defended the ruling, saying that all beach goers must be “respectful of good morals and secularism,” as well as the “rules of hygiene and security.”
Using hygiene and security as the reasons for enforcing the ban do not apply to wet suits or other objective beach wear.
If it is OK for a man to wear it, why is it illegal for a woman to wear it? #BurkiniBan pic.twitter.com/e1dRTAffL2
— OccPal-Gaza (@OccPalGaza) August 24, 2016
The woman who was caught wearing clothes while napping on the beach was forced to remove the upper layer of her outfit. Her pants and undershirt were allowed to stay on. However, it’s the image of two male police officers forcing her to remove the clothing that has sparked even more rage at the ruling.
1925 vs 2016. 90 years later and we’re still policing women on what they wear to the beach. #BurkiniBan pic.twitter.com/gOUKM8H8NZ
— Matthew Ruddle (@RuddleMatthew) August 24, 2016
The right-wing Cannes mayor said he put this ordinance in place because religious freedom is not protected during times of heightened security. However, no other religious clothing is being restricted in France. The Cannes mayor claimed to be “protecting” Muslim women by enforcing the ban because they would not choose to wear modest covering if not forced to do so by “Islamic extremists.”
Would French authorities force these women to remove their outfits for not “respecting good morals” ?!!#BurkiniBan pic.twitter.com/QcCpXJdBT4
— Said Shoaib (@saidshouib) August 24, 2016
This is not the first time French officials have tried to limit the clothing choices of Muslim women. The hijab has been debated in France for years because many consider it an anti-French form of modesty. It is no secret that the ethnically French society has taken issue with many Muslim French citizens. The country touts secularism and feminism, but only the versions that agree with French standards.
Secularism applies to Muslims, but not French Jews or Christians. Feminism applies to freedom of sexual expression, but not the women who choose to dress modestly. Laws like the burkini ban are ways of suppressing what is not deemed “French,” while ostracizing an integral part of French society – Muslims.
After colonizing Arab and Muslim countries, France opened its doors to those they once occupied in a gesture of humanitarianism. And yet, France is still not ready to stop occupying the bodies and beliefs of Arabs and Muslims.
The burkini is hurting no one and is the most discriminatory approach to counterterrorism that French cities could have adopted. “Othering” Muslim members of Western society and making them feel inferior are the best recruitment tools for Islamic terrorist organizations. Studies on ISIL recruitment shows that they attract Westerners who feel angry with society and like they don’t belong.
Instead of making it illegal to dress modestly, France should build communication lines between non-Muslims and Muslims within the country to combat Islamic terrorism. Figuring out the reason behind the attacks is a true leadership strategy; not suppressing the freedom of innocent women who had nothing to do with the attacks.