BURQA WOMAN

 

Burqa WOMAN!

Burqa WOMAN! These days you hear this curse a lot when you, as an Iranian Muslim women, are trying to defend your religion in Internet discussions.

But how is being an Iranian woman really like? A Burqa WOMAN?

 

The answer actually depends greatly on your aspect of look.

From one perspective, usually offered by western media and adopted by international organizations, foreign politicians, most people in the West, and even some Iranian women and men, an Iranian woman is a soul dominated under Men's brutal power, with no authority of thinking or being influential in her society or even her own family; in her society she is considered to be created to work at home and to satisfy the sexual desires of her husband; she is treated like goods, hidden beneath the burqa, and forced to marry anyone her father decides at any age.

 

According to this point of view, Iranian women should become familiar with western and modern life style and arise to taking back their violated rights. And on their way to the freedom they can count on the help of International organizations, foreign media and political leaders around the world.

However, despite this vision which is mostly prevalent among foreigners, there is a completely different perspective without taking which, any analysis of the Iranian community will lead to fundamental errors.

According to the second vision, an Iranian woman is an independent thoughtful person feeling a heavy responsibility towards society and history. She is encouraged to follow her religious patterns like Fatima daughter of Muhammad, Zeinab sister of Imam Hussein, Mary mother of Jesus, and Asiya wife of Pharaoh, who fought to their last breath for their faith and society.

Only by considering this vision we may explain many noble historical events like fight against British domination at the time of Nasser al-Din Shah, fight against anti-religious unveiling at the time of Reza Khan, and fight against the dictatorship of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.

Today is the 80^th anniversary of the bloody uprising of Goharshad Mosque during which Iranian women and men rioted against de-Islamization plan of Reza khan who forced the unveiling in Iran. He ordered attacking Goharshad Mosque and massacred the protesting people gathered there, leaving 2000-5000 martyred and nearly 1500 arrested. Most of Iranian old women remember those days when they weren’t allowed to be present in public places in hijab, otherwise government agents would kill or capture them.

 

Yes! Iranian women die for their Hijab while in the western media it is said that they hate hijab and are fighting against it!

Perhaps this wrong view which is promoted by Western media is the origin of confusion of western citizens when they see Iranian women, like me, defending Islam in the Internet.

Maybe the comparison of the false image of an under-dominated Iranian woman by the free-thinking woman who can reasonably defend her religion and Hijab, makes them so angry that they unconsciously use offensive phrases like Burqa WOMAN in the internet discussions, which we, Iranian women, hear a lot these days.

 

Perhaps it is time that western citizens ask themselves which is the real prejudice:

Iranian women’s activities to defend their beloved religion and country

Or

Throwing insults at Iranian women by western citizens who cannot tolerate the liberal-thinking of a woman and is accustomed to seeing the women who obediently follow the sexual libertinism in the West which is promoted by the media to make women as means of satisfying lusts of men and filling the pockets fashion and clothing cartels.