This article was written by Sloane Kapit, class of 2019.
“I decided to wear a hijab because I believe it’s an opportunity for me to see how it feels to wear a hijab and to show support for the Muslim community. By participating in World Hijab Day, I hope to better understand how hijabs can feel liberating for some women and how they could also feel oppressive in countries where women are forced to wear them. I believe World Hijab Day is not only great for us to gain understanding, but also for us to show solidarity with Muslim people around us so that we can overcome prejudice and divisions and become a closer-knit community.”
Junior Daniela Velez
“The fact that we celebrate an aspect of a culture would be fine if we weren’t glorifying [Islam] and trying to make it seem okay that this culture has deeply misogynistic elements and that the hijab is representative of the constant repression and misogyny contained within the Islamic culture.”
Junior Talha Pala
“In Sri Lanka, where I’m from, there’s a vibrant Muslim community, but in developed nations like the U.S. we are not as exposed to the beautiful cultures and religions as others across the world are. I personally have friends in both Jordan and Egypt who have to play tennis in one hundred degree heat wearing hijabs. I asked them their opinions of participating in World Hijab Day as a non-Muslim, and they loved the idea. If you’re doing it with the right purpose, then it’s not cultural appropriation. You’re doing it for a pure purpose; the culture has invited you to support them and to support global religious tolerance. It’s a step not only towards educating our youth about the diverse world we live in, but also towards a unified world as a whole.”
Senior Anya Gunewardena
“I understand that the intention to make people who wear a hijab feel welcome, but wearing a hijab for one day doesn’t allow you to experience how Muslim people, who wear one, feel in their everyday lives.”
Sophomore Raahym Khan
