The current debates on abolishing hijabs in the European Union have seen many countries absolish headscarves. Nations including France, Belgium, and Austria are among the countries that have banned hijabs in public spaces. However, in Sweden, various bills have been presented in the parliament. The aimed to investigate wheather Hijab and other Islamic covering should be banned in Sweden. The current study adopted a systematic literature review that included 16 studies on the debates about banning the Hijab. The study's findings confirm that the call for a ban on Hijab in Sweden are unjustified and influenced by the oversimplification of the Islamic cultures. Besides, the assertions of the study indicate that the European nations unlawfully targeted Muslims, subjecting them to islamophobia and hate crimes.

The purpose of this project is to examine how contemporary contexts of Islamophobia contribute to shaping notions and performances of Muslim womanhood. I center Muslim female social media influencers in my analysis and examine how they perform and (re)define Muslim womanhood through fashion, aesthetic labor, the hijab, and modest embodiment practices online. The specific research question that undergirds this project is, "How do contexts and discourses of Islamophobia contribute to shaping notions and performances of Muslim womanhood?" My data is derived from interviews with Muslimah social media influencers in the US, UK, and Canada; a survey with their social media followers, and a content analysis of their photo and video posts on Instagram and YouTube. Findings suggest that racialized and gendered expectations of Muslim womanhood emerge on the one hand, from the western non-Muslim community's racialized perceptions and understandings of Muslim women and Islam, and on the other, from the western Muslim community's reaction to its racialization in the global war on terror. The result of these expectations is the imposition of representational and moral responsibilities on Muslim women, who are regarded as visible and public representations of the Muslim community and of Islam as a faith. Findings also suggest that in response to the burden of these expectations, Muslim women exercise their agency to mobilize Islamic feminisms to their advantage in order to negotiate with, resist, and critique western Muslim and non-Muslim expectations of modesty, piety, empowerment, and the hijab. Consequently, Muslimah influencers are forcing western Muslim and non-Muslim communities to reevaluate their expectations of who fits within the category the 'Muslim Woman' while also opening up a discursive space for the possibility of new formulations and conceptualizations of Muslim womanhood that are more aligned with egalitarian Islamic feminist interpretations of Muslimah ways of living and being. / Doctor of Philosophy / In this research study, I examine how Islamophobia has contributed to shaping western Muslim and non-Muslim community perceptions and expectations of Muslim women. I focus specifically on Muslim female social media influencers to understand how they perform Muslim femininity, modesty, piety and the hijab on Instagram and YouTube. I collected data from interviews with Muslim female social media influencers in the U.S., UK, and Canada, a survey with their social media followers, and photos and videos posted by Muslim female influencers on social media. My findings show that Muslim women must contend with expectations from western non-Muslim communities, whose perceptions of Muslim emerge from Islamophobic understandings of Muslims and Islam. Simultaneously, Muslim women must contend with certain moral and representational responsibilities imposed on them by Muslim communities in the west, who are currently working to address and counteract Islamophobia, by posing a positive image of Muslims and Islam in the eyes of the western public. My findings also show that in response to the burden of these expectation, Muslim women critique these gendered burdens by exercising their agency to interpret Quranic scripture on modesty, the hijab, and gendered behaviors with an Islamic feminist lens. In doing so, they are forcing Muslim and non-Muslim communities to reevaluate the moral and representational burdens placed on Muslim women's shoulders, while also offering a space where others can conceptualize and perform Muslim womanhood in ways that align more with egalitarian Islamic feminist interpretations of Muslim women's ways of living and being.

Chi, Zeyu. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2011. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 91-93). / Abstracts in English and Chinese. / Introduction --- p.1 / Chapter Chapter One --- Background of the Research and its Main Theoretical Questions --- p.4 / Chapter Chapter Two --- Liberating or Burdensome? Case Study of the Veiled --- p.36 / Chapter Chapter Three --- Fitna and the Universal Norms of Practical Reason --- p.46 / Chapter Chapter Four --- The Ontological Significance of Veiling --- p.67 / Conclusion --- p.83 / Bibliography --- p.91

The aim of this study is to investigate how women, having migrated from a Muslim country to Sweden, reason about their veiling – why do they wear the veil and what meaning does the veil have for them? The veiling custom has become the subject of a heated and polarized debate in Sweden. But where are the veiled women given space to speak, and why are they not involved more in a debate that most of all concern them?                                                                                                                                    Four women from Syria, now living in Sweden, participated in this interview study. The purpose is to investigate the aim with basis in three analytic themes: identity, presentation of self and resistance. These themes have been analysed based on relevant theories and previous research within the subject: social and personal identity, impression control, stereotyping, power and resistance. The previous research consists of three different studies performed on countries with a Muslim majority or minority: India, Indonesia, Canada, Denmark, and Great Britain. In this way, this study attempts to understand, as profoundly as possible, the meaning of the veil from the perspective of the veiled woman herself.                                                                 The result shows that the veil has great meaning in terms of identity and presentation of self. The result also shows that the clash with the discursive power regarding veiling can cause resistance, which in turn affects the meaning of the veil both in terms of internal identity creation and the external presentation of self. This is due to the threat against identity from a challenging environment forcing the human being to negotiate and define identity within herself, which also affects presentation of self. The experiences and reasoning of the respondents differ both over time and between them, sometimes in paradoxical ways, although they are similar in some aspects. This indicates that although they experience, are affected by and shaped by the same societal discourses, they react differently and therefore relate differently to their veiling. / Syftet med denna kvalitativa studie är att undersöka hur muslimska kvinnor som har migrerat från ett muslimskt land resonerar om sitt slöjbärande– varför bär de slöja och vilken betydelse har slöjan för dem? Att bära slöja har blivit ett omdiskuterat ämne i Sverige och åsikterna som hörs och syns i samhället är både många och polariserade. Men var ges de slöjbärande kvinnorna plats att tala och varför involveras de inte mer i en debatt som först och främst rör dem själva?                                                                                                                                  Fyra kvinnor från Syrien, numera boende i Sverige, har deltagit i studien. Med intervju som metod avser studien att undersöka syftet utifrån tre analytiska teman: identitet, självpresentation och motstånd. Dessa teman har analyserats utifrån relevanta teorier och tidigare forskning i ämnet; social och personlig identitet, intrycksstyrning, stereotypering samt makt och motstånd. Den tidigare forskningen är tre olika studier gjorda i muslimska majoritets- och minoritetsländer såsom, Indien, Indonesien Canada och Danmark och Storbritannien. På detta sätt avser denna studie att på ett så djupgående sätt som möjligt försöka förstå slöjans betydelse ur den slöjbärandes eget perspektiv.    Studiens resultat visar att slöjan har stor betydelse för identitet och självpresentation. Resultatet visar också att möte med diskursiv makt kring slöjbärande kan leda till motstånd vilket påverkar slöjans betydelse både för det inre identitetsarbetet och den yttre självpresentationen. Detta beror på att hotet mot identiteten från en ifrågasättande omgivning tvingar människan att förhandla och definiera identiteten inom sig själv vilket också påverkar självpresentationen. Informanternas upplevelser och resonemang skiljer sig åt både över tid och mellan varandra på ibland paradoxala sätt, samtidigt som de liknar varandra i vissa avseenden. Det tyder på att även om de upplever, påverkas och formas av samma diskurser i samhället så kan de reagera olika och därmed också förhålla sig olika till sitt slöjbärande.

In this study, a specific group of religiously active Muslim women is investigated about how they are treated in Swedish society and what they consider the role of women in Islam. Predictions that Islam would be a women-threatening religion is common in the media, but also among the majority of Sweden's population, according to respondents in this study. Therefore, the intention of the study has been to gain a better understanding of the Muslim women's lives in Sweden. The study has a qualitative approach based on a comparative hermeneutic interview study where five, active Muslim women to a varied extent have been interviewed. The result shows that all women have been subjected to violations in society and that they consider that the majority of Swedish society's individuals are prejudiced by Islam as religion assuming that Muslim women are oppressed, are abandoned against their will, have to wear veil and must obey their men - who are formed as aggressive and violent.

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La distinction entre le port du hijab, généralement associé à la visibilité de l’islam, et l’obligation du port du hijab, entraînant l’invisibilité des femmes iraniennes, s’ancre dans la dualité entre le choix individuel lié à la pratique religieuse et l’impératif imposé par le régime politique depuis l’avènement de la République islamique d’Iran en 1979. Ce régime a établi des règles vestimentaires strictes contraignant toutes les femmes, indépendamment de leur origine nationale ou de leur confession religieuse, à revêtir un voile couvrant leur tête et leur cou, dissimulant ainsi leurs cheveux, entraînant d’importantes manifestations. Inspiré par l’acte de désobéissance civile de Vida Movahed en 2017 à Téhéran, qui a donné naissance au mouvement « Les Filles de la Rue de la Révolution », le caricaturiste iranien Mana Neyestani, exilé depuis 2007 et résidant en France depuis 2011 en raison de la répression politique en Iran, a renforcé son soutien. À travers la répétition symbolique de ce geste rébellion dans ses œuvres, Neyestani exprime sa solidarité envers les femmes iraniennes résistant aux contraintes vestimentaires imposées par le régime, amplifiant ainsi leur voix. Ce geste demeure un symbole de la résistance des femmes iraniennes, perdurant jusqu’aux soulèvements depuis le mouvement de 2022 accompagné du slogan « Femme, Vie, Liberté ». Ce mémoire a pour but d’étudier l’impact du geste de Movahed sur le travail de Neyestani, explorant les dimensions médiatiques, historiques, religieuses et politiques de cette interaction. En utilisant le concept foucaldien/butlerien de « subjectivation », l’étude démontre que Movahed, en tant que sujet, n’est pas simplement déterminée par les relations de pouvoir, mais plutôt qu’elle peut s'en affranchir grâce à ce processus. L’agentivité de Movahed face aux contraintes révèle la construction sociale, non seulement liée à la condition des femmes, mais également à l’organisation générale du pouvoir. Son geste fortement symbolique devient ainsi le symbole d’un militantisme performatif au cœur des dynamiques sociopolitiques, constituant une menace pour le système patriarcal en exposant ses mécanismes. Les répétitions de ce geste à plusieurs reprises, tant en Iran que dans le travail de Neyestani, représentent des actes de subversion qui contestent le système et, potentiellement, contribuent à son érosion. Ce mémoire aspire à fournir une réflexion sur la capacité de l’art, en particulier le dessin de presse, à façonner une vision positive du monde et à contribuer à sa réalisation. / The distinction between the wearing of the hijab, commonly associated with the visibility of Islam, and the compulsory wearing of the hijab, resulting in the invisibility of Iranian women, is rooted in the duality between individual choice linked to religious practice and the imperative imposed by the political regime since the establishment of the Islamic Republic of Iran in 1979. This regime has instituted strict dress codes, compelling all women, regardless of their national origin or religious affiliation, to don a veil covering their head and neck, concealing their hair and prompting significant protests. Inspired by Vida Movahed’s act of civil disobedience in 2017 in Tehran, which gave rise to the “Girls of the Revolution Street” movement, Iranian cartoonist Mana Neyestani, living in exile since 2007 due to political repression in Iran, has consolidated his support. Through the symbolic repetition of this gesture in his works, Neyestani expresses solidarity with Iranian women resisting the regime’s dress constraints, thereby amplifying their voices. This gesture remains a symbol of Iranian women’s resistance, persisting through the uprisings taking place since the movement in 2022, accompanied by the slogan “Woman, Life, Freedom”. This master’s thesis aims to study the impact of Movahed’s gesture on Neyestani’s work, exploring its media, historical, religious, and political dimensions. Utilizing the Foucauldian/Butlerian concept of “subjectivation” the study demonstrates that Movahed, as a subject, is not solely determined by power relations but can emancipate herself through this process. Movahed’s agency in the face of constraints reveals the social construction, not only related to the condition of women but also to the overall organization of power. Her highly symbolic gesture becomes a symbol of performative activism at the heart of sociopolitical dynamics, posing a threat to the patriarchal system by exposing its mechanisms. The repeated performance of this gesture, both in Iran and in Neyestani’s work, represents acts of subversion challenging the system and potentially contributing to its erosion. This thesis aspires to provide a reflection on the ability of art, particularly editorial cartoons, to shape a positive vision of the world and contribute to its realization.

This thesis argues that the elite and urban women leaders of the Palestinian women's movement neglected to engage rural women and women living in refugee camps as their equals in a women's movement. Further, despite women's active presence in the public sphere, the sphere remained defined in masculine terms. As a result, Palestinian women, as "guests" in the domain of men, were easily pushed out after they had served their purpose in the nationalist crisis. What is remarkable is that even after Palestinian men reclaimed the public sphere, Palestinian women remained politically active in the private sphere. In order to understand how this was possible, we must look more closely at the terms "public sphere" and "private sphere".

The purpose of this work is to bring better understanding into the problematic of negotiation of veiling behaviour among young Muslim women. In the current world they face many challenges caused by stereotypical images that are being spread about them through various media platforms. One of those stereotypes is the misuse of the veil as a symbol and taking it out of the context. Main goal of this work is therefore to observe the role of media, new media in particular, within diverse socio-political contexts in the lives of young Muslim women, especially on the negotiation of their veiling behaviour. Misinterpretation and misuse of the symbol of the veil by the media within diverse socio-political contexts will be investigated from the perception of these young women, with help of the qualitative approach, namely in-depth interviews with the sample of seven Muslim women between the ages of 22 and 36 living in Czechia, Lebanon, Netherlands and Switzerland. To put this issue into perspective of the researcher's home country, Czechia, additional and supportive data was collected among 100 respondents from Czech non-Muslim public. This survey investigated the perception of Islam and veiled women by the Czech public to prove or disprove the hypothesis that the Islamic tradition of veiling is perceived...

The purpose of the study is to highlight women's experiences of and beliefs about the labour market, in relation to wearing the veil. It´s based on a qualitative study of semi-structured interviews with thirteen university students of women wearing hijab and illustrate how their reflections of discrimination affect educational choices. It also describes what treatment the women wearing hijab has experienced in previous contact with the labor market and when the veil has been actualized in different work situations. The result is described in three themes:  “wearing hijab”, “education and profession” and “work life”. It displays how the women highlight their experiences of discrimination towards their hijab and states that there is discrimination in social and public contexts, as well as in the Swedish labor market. Furthermore, the women tell how difficult it is for the hijab wearing woman to be considered as her own individual, instead, she is defined by the hijab and met with prejudiced values and reactions. The results were analyzed with theories as postcolonial feminism, orientalism, and different forms of discrimination, stigmatization and exclusion. During the job search, the respondents in this study tells that they need to over emphasize their skills because they constantly feel that they need to disprove prejudices about an imagine incompetence. Especially after the European Court of Justice ruled (2017-03-14) that entitles the employers to deny women wearing hijab at the workplace. Additionally, the negative attitude is not always visible but hidden outward and towards the periphery of society. This study clarifies how they are treated in society and highlights the limits of their opportunities in the labor market because of prejudice about the hijab. The results are related to previous studies and are discussed in relation to the dominant image of the veil in the West.