In Egypt and Morocco, hijab wearing signals class and expands women’s mobility

Evidence

The equation of the hijab and the burqa with oppression ignores the agency that many Muslim women employ by choosing to wear the hijab. Ahmed (1992) and Abu-Lughod (2013) interrogate the idea that Muslim women who cover their hair in countries like Egypt and Morocco are oppressed, arguing that covering is a sign of class in these countries and has made women’s mobility and participation in society and the workforce more accessible. In other words, wearing the hijab and the burqa empowers many women living in Muslim-majority societies, something that is completely ignored by the West, including feminists and academics who continue to equate the hijab and the burqa with women’s subjugation. — Saher Selod, Forever Suspect_ Racialized…, 35

Categorization

• ADDENDUM: Directly relevant to ‘Complaints About Immodesty Go Way Back’ — the cross-cultural moral panic over dress as class/political signaling maps onto Ahmed and Abu-Lughod’s claim that covering signals class.