To dress and undress!
Written by Haitham Sabbah on 30. April 2006, 0021hrs // Part of Haitham Sabbah's adventure in Human Rights, Islam, Religion, Saudi Arabia // Other posts by Haitham Sabbah
Good news first. Islamic fashion comes this time from… Nike…and the United Nations. What does the UN has to do with this? Don’t ask me, read on:
Recently Muslim women living in a Somali refugee camp in Kenya were given unique new volleyball uniforms.
Designed through a partnership between Nike and the United Nations, the uniforms permit the women athletes to dig, spike, and set while covering their bodies and heads in a way that remains true to their faith.
Nike spokesperson Alan Marks says the Beaverton, Oregon, company currently has no plans to commercialize the product. And most other major sportswear manufacturers have no lines specifically targeting Muslim women.
Honestly, the dress in the picture looks funny, specially that thing on top of the head…
Now the bad news… Lingerie leads the fight for Saudi women’s rights (The Independent):
…in the women-only section of the Kingdom Tower mall, one of the few places in which a woman can work on the shop floor…
Fardos, a Palestinian shop assistant, stands smiling in a sharp suit and a T-shirt with the word “Babe” emblazoned across her chest…”Women come in here and try on these wonderful things. They ask me what looks good on them and what doesn’t. Do you think they feel as comfortable when a man serves them?” she asked.
Her question is one that is dividing Saudi society, after a government … ordered lingerie shops to replace salesmen with women… From 22 June, women such as Fardos will no longer be restricted to finding work in small, women- only shopping zones but will become employable in lingerie stores across the kingdom… windows will be blacked out and men will be barred from entering the premises, moves that consumer experts say are not conducive to boosting sales.
Syrian working in Lailaky Lingerie store in a Jeddah shopping mall, said 70 per cent of his customers were men buying for their wives…”I think it’s good for a woman to get advice from a salesman. We know what looks good on them,” he said.
In a country in which religious police still roam the cities’ malls to track illicit interaction between men and women - they have been known to raid restaurants to catch out couples who are not married or related…
bas bas… enough… the whole damn thing is to grant woman one of her rights; and that is her right to work. In Saudi, for woman to be allowed to work, it means… fire the lingerie salesmen and replace them with woman… and don’t forget to blackout the shop. Damn, a blacked lingerie shop? How does it look ladies?
It seems there is no problem into getting a dress. The problem is (was) always in getting… a little dress!
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April 30th, 2006 at 7:54 am
How can they compete if they don’t have proper gear?
Religion is making their competition a complete failure.
If they do win it will make the West look very stupid. (Which it already does, thanks to Bush.)
We have our radicals but they don’t controll us. How come your radicals controll you?
Whatever happened to freedom?
Freedom of thought.
Freedom of belief.
Freedom of belonging.
Freedom of free thought.
Freedom of freedom of religion.
I DON’T BELIEVE but I accept everyone as to who they are.
Religion is going to be the downfall of this world if no-one will talk.
If they are only going to support their views and blame everyone else they are wrong!
Non-believers are a growing sector in this world and both sides are going to have to deal with us.
April 30th, 2006 at 2:02 pm
About the Nike outfit, I think with water it will stick? and define the body perectly, maybe making it even more defined as a whole than wearing a bathing suit!
And the thing on the head, does look strange!
As for the lingerie shops, I dont see anything wrong in replacing the shopowners with women. As long as it not defined as giving women thier rights. If anything of more importance they could start up with allowing the driving lisence and freedom of choice.
April 30th, 2006 at 3:54 pm
I don’t think what the woman is pictures wearing is what Haitham is talking about (volleyball suits), but rather a Turkish-designed swimsuit.
You can call “the thing on her head” as strange as you like, but the reality is many women who wear hijab-whether or not you agree with their choices is up to you- need and want something like this that would enable them to swim in pools or beaches that are not “women only”. Its hard enough for them to deal with the mockery of non-Muslims who don’t understand why they are doing this-but now they deal with it from Muslims and Arabs too. Shameful. Let everyone choose what to wear- its their choice. In the background a women is wearing shorts, no one is bothering her, so give the women in the hijab-suit the same dignity.
April 30th, 2006 at 5:19 pm
Laila,
I have nothing against Hijab, in fact my wife wears Hijab and as you said, it’s woman’s choice. That’s what I always called for.
As for the picture, it is from the same source quoted in this post (National Geographic), follow the link and you can read the full post as well see the photo.
However, as you said, this is a photo of a swim suite, I don’t know if Turkish or not. But beside the funny headwear, what happens when this suite get wet? I guess it will stick to the body, so, what makes it “ISLAMIC” then? Or is it Islamic when it is DRY only?
April 30th, 2006 at 8:56 pm
Hey Haitham, In my experience it does not necessarily stick to your body, I’m not sure what to liken it to, but there is a similar sports material made out of it..
personally I prefer swimming in private or in women-only pools etc. of course those aren’t always available so I do what I can. If snorkeling, Scuba suits with swimcap and t-shirt.
But because I’m athletic these are all problems I have faced in the past, whether on a soccer or basketball team. In highschool our school was kind enough to custom make our team’s soccer outfit for three of us who wore hijab (with long pants and ts). I once wrote an article on Muslim women marathoners in teh US. NOt all wear hijab of course, some wear it to the back (which I do too sometimes) or a hat. Anyhow.
May 1st, 2006 at 6:53 pm
I don’t understand what you mean by “force them to wear it?”
You have to understand something. No body force a woman to play sport. Therefore, if she is a veiled woman and she wants to play sport in public, it is her choice to wear a modest dress as she sees fits. Simply, veiled woman (by her choice and well) will stick to wearing modest dress whenever they go in public, no body force them to do so.
So, please stop portraying that woman is forced to wear this ir that. In the places where woman is forced to wear Hijab, woman is not allowed to play sport in public in first place, so your assumption is not valid anyway.
May 1st, 2006 at 11:04 pm
[...] absurd nature of some of the dress codes and demeaning treatment. Sabbah has a great post To Dress and Undress! which begins with the picture of a woman who is certainly no [...]
May 2nd, 2006 at 1:06 am
About the windows of the lingerie stores:
In the U.S. in many places lingerie stores don’t display their wares so publically. In fact, many Americans are very surprised to see how openly lingerie is displayed in the ‘conservative’ Middle East. Of course I’m not saying that stores should be forced to blacken their windows, but just that it is perfectly possible to sell lingerie that way. Banning men from the stores is more problematic, as everyone knows that men like to buy for their wives. On the other hand, most women in the U.S. have been made to feel uncomfortable by male lingerie shoppers at one time or another. Some of them can get a bit creepy. So, if their goal is to protect women from encountering that at any cost, then they’re going about it the right way. All in all, I don’t think the laws are unreasonable. Though I agree that it would be more productive to let women drive.
As for the sports gear, I think it’s great. Anything looks funny if you haven’t seen it before. And you shouldn’t jump to the conclusion that it sticks when you have no reason to do so. Women who wear hijab have just as much right to play sports as anyone else, and to do so in a way consistent with their beliefs. I don’t look like a fashion plate in my gym clothes, either!
May 2nd, 2006 at 8:41 am
Strange? funny? was that the best you could come up with?
With all due respect to everyone, please stop being shallow.
Not all kind of clothing material stick when wet, and if so, some might feel it is better than nothing at all!
Different people have different views, but what kills me is the anti-Islam I see amongst us-Arab Muslims. So sad.
May 2nd, 2006 at 10:04 am
Get real Shaden. There is nothing anti-Islam. It’s all about anti-Stupidity. Unfortunately all these stupidity is done under the name of Islam.
Back to sticky or nor sticky, this is not the point. The point is, can woman practice sport in public in Arab (Muslim) land as she feels suitable? What she chose to wear is her business.
May 3rd, 2006 at 7:59 am
“that thing on her head looks funny” rubbed me the wrong way also. How often do we read about the sadly oppressed Muslim women shrouded away and most likely abused and waiting for a non Muslim woman to come free her from her torment. Now Muslim women who do cover have more options to live as, gasp, normal women and we get the ‘look funny’. I believe we should stand up and support such women because we will sure have more than enough “haram haram” stick bashing muttawa want to bes.
to the question “does it show your shape while wet” as a woman who wears on of the swimsuits (although not as nice as the one in the picture) there is a ’suction’ affect as you exit the pool (dunno how else to explain this) the lack of air between the wet suit and the skin is what will cause the clothes to stick With a bit of skill its easy to avoid as you exit a pool. I find that a gust of wind against my abya exposes more of my shape than the suit. The suits however dry faster and expose much less than a self made get up to try and enjoy some swimming. and good thing.. just because I’m muslim doesn’t mean that I can’t be like other moms on vacation, splashing along with my children in a water park. Bravo to companies who create such clothing, now if only they would come down on the price. That austrilian company is out of its mind with their prices.
btw the idea that one can completely hide their shape leads one to a burkah reality. Or simply lock woman in houses and aren’t we tierd of that yet?
As for womans rights and working. Honestly as a woman in Saudi to see grown men folding g-strings in the local lengerie store.. or sizing me up as to ‘what size fits best’ for a bra and panties sure isn’t my idea of womans rights. And its truely odd that windows now have to be blackened out for women to sell lengiere but they were waited on by men with clear windows when they bought it. Its a bit amusing to me as a Muslim woman to watch partitions being made, windows being painted all to hire women.
As for womens rights to include firing men. Majority of women I know do not buy their under garments in the kingdom Many cross the bridge to Bahrain, others wait until they leave on vacation and make purchases simply because the only option here is men working the stores. It could be viewed as simply doing better buisness. I’d be more apt to go into La senza to buy under garments with a woman waiting on me than men. Men, non saudi men more specificly, will be fired as more women come in the work force. is it better to keep the men and women don’t work? some one will have to loose somewhere.
My apologies for ranting on your blog
May 5th, 2006 at 11:32 am
[...] comprend pas pourquoi les Nations Unies devraient s’impliquer dans la “mode islamique”. Il écrit: “Les femmes musulmanes vivant dans un camp de réfugiés somaliens au Keny [...]
January 19th, 2008 at 4:38 pm
as a muslim i do not like to be told by the public or any one what to do and what not to so the girl in the pics has made her choice and her family support her so what is you peoples problem i jst cannot understand Allah ke waaste stop makingfun of others and your selves because it isnt doning any good to any one