(Un)veiling the veiled Muslim woman

The veil is an obstacle to Muslim women and their freedom, becoming an area of debate in regards to “the woman question.” Scholars are revealing narrow assumptions of dominant logic that appears attractive to the West. The veil is either oppressive or liberating and/or a political statement. Such binaries were evident in the interviews: the five veiled participants were discriminated against (within their community and outside) as fundamentalist, homebound, submissive, and retrogressive. The five unveiled participants were discriminated against (within their communities) as unreligious, immoral, and “Westernized.” The theoretical approach is anti-racist, anti-imperialist, and feminist. Scholars like Talpade Mohanty, Deniz Kandiyoti, Reina Lewis, Edward Said, Lila Abu-Lughod, Fatema Mernissi, Leila Ahmed, Irshad Manji, and Meyda Yegenoglu are incorporated. Critical theory (postcolonial and feminist), textual analysis, and qualitative research are used. Artwork, poetry, film, and literature are also explored. And, there is a focus on life histories and case studies.