It is a myth that women in today's society are liberated. What kind of
freedom can there be when a woman cannot walk down the street without every aspect
of her physical self being checked out? When I wear the hijab I feel
safe from all of this. I can rest assured that no one is looking at me
and making assumptions about my character from the length of my skirt.
There is a barrier between me and those who would exploit me. I am
first and foremost a human being, equal to any man, and not vulnerable
because of my sexuality. One of the saddest truths of our time is the
question of the beauty myth and female self-image. Reading popular
teenage magazines, you can instantly find out what kind of body image
is in or out. and if you have the wrong body type, well, then, you're
just going to have to change it, aren't you? After all, there is no
way that you can be overweight and still be beautiful. Look at any
advertisement. Is a woman being used to sell the product? How old is
she? How attractive is she? What is she wearing? More often than not,
that woman will be no older than her early 20s, taller, slimmer and
more attractive than average, dressed in skimpy clothing. Why do we
allow ourselves to be manipulated like this? Whether the '90s woman
wishes to believe it or not, she is being forced into a mold. She is
being coerced into selling herself, into compromising herself. This is
why we have 13-year-old girls sticking their fingers down their
throats and overweight adolescents hanging themselves. When people ask
me if I feel oppressed, I can honestly say no. I made this decision
out of my own free will. I like the fact that I am taking control of
the way other people perceive me. I enjoy the fact that I don't give
anyone anything to look at and that I have released myself from the