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Tamira Stephens Perception Of The Muslim Veil In The United States

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While I previously viewed the Muslim form of veiling as misogynistic and compulsory; however, Tamira Stephens describes that certain American Muslims see it as empowering (Stephens pg. 5). Furthermore, despite the common belief as veiling being particular to Muslims, Tamira Stephens also reports through her essay that even “more American” subcultures (the Amish) have a form of this practice much closer to my perception of misogyny (cite). Though Stephens’ comparison of the Amish and American Muslim veil serves as a means to subdue any negative stereotypes surrounding the Muslim practice, Stephens’ description of this Islamic practice of veiling can also serve as a testament to the positive effects of pluralism and equality in the United States. …show more content…

For example, Stephens quotes Pamela K. Taylor (a Muslim woman) as saying, “the veil…is ‘a clear statement that I did not want to be judged by my body…but as an individual… (Stephens pg. 5).” On the other hand, for Amish women, the veil “by design minimizes individuality, creating belonging to the larger group… (Stephens pg. 5).” This idea of the Muslim veil as empowering could be a dialectical adoption by American Islam from the larger American culture in which it exists, and evidence to the “melting-pot” idea of multiculturalism in the United States. While the Amish resist modern society by a “theological mandate (Stephens pg. 7),” they refuse any conformity to the larger society, and, thus, remain “in the past.” As American Muslim women “live in and among a larger non-Muslim community (Stephens pg. 7),” not only do they bring their cultural ideas into the larger American culture, they also adopt American ideals into their own culture. As a result, the United States (which, to a degree, values individuality and feminism), though seemingly resistant to Islam at times, actually allows for the idea of a female empowering veil, and, perhaps, even the Islamic ideas of modesty can influence American culture as

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