Are you an EPFL student looking for a semester project?
Work with us on data science and visualisation projects, and deploy your project as an app on top of GraphSearch.
Concept
Hijab and burka controversies in Europe
Summary
Hijab and burka controversies in Europe revolve around the variety of headdresses worn by Muslim women, which have become prominent symbols of the presence of Islam in especially Western Europe. In several countries, the adherence to hijab (an Arabic noun meaning "to cover") has led to political controversies and proposals for a legal partial or full ban in some or all circumstances. Some countries already have laws banning the wearing of masks in public, which can be applied to veils that conceal the face. Other countries are debating similar legislation, or have more limited prohibitions. Some of them apply only to face-covering clothing such as the burqa, boushiya, or niqab; some apply to any clothing with an Islamic religious symbolism such as the khimar, a type of headscarf. The issue has different names in different countries, and "the veil" or hijab may be used as general terms for the debate, representing more than just the veil itself, or the concept of modesty embodied in hijab.
The reasons given for prohibition vary. Legal bans on face-covering clothing are often justified on security grounds, as an anti-terrorism measure. However, the public controversy is wider, and may be indicative of polarisation between Muslims and western European societies. Some policies and proposals merely include Islamic headdresses into the entire spectrum of religious symbols, also including the crucifix, Christian head covering, the kippah, the mitpaḥat or tichel and other clothes and accessories, that some argue should be absent in certain places on the basis of secularism in order to establish religiously neutral spaces so that everyone receives the same treatment, and to prevent social conflicts. Other policies and proposals specifically target the hijab, burka and similar Islamic headdresses on the basis of them allegedly being oppressive to the women wearing them (a claim countered by many hijab- and burka-wearing women themselves, but supported by many liberal and former Muslim women who do not wear them), or because of their perceived "un-Europeanness" and other such territorial or nationalistic arguments.
About this result
This page is automatically generated and may contain information that is not correct, complete, up-to-date, or relevant to your search query. The same applies to every other page on this website. Please make sure to verify the information with EPFL's official sources.