Stop the insanity!
Like everywhere else in the online Muslim world, hijab is a big topic. MuslimSpace (like Myspace but for Muslims) has, since its creation, had a rule forbidding women from posting pictures of themselves without “hijab” (in this case meaning headcovering). Although I disagreed with this rule, I joined anyway, hoping that one day they would realize the error of excluding a large number of their Muslim sisters from having pictures that reflect their true selves.
It seems that day has come, thank God. The founder/admin Mohamed has stated that: “till further notice, modest pics even if non-hijabbed are allowed on the site.” A wonderful event, indeed, but somehow he manages to turn the allowance into an insult.
He continues (all emphasis is my own):
“MuslimSpace should reflect the true image of the real Ummah even if its not perfect. There is no use of acting all pious and hijabbed online, while the reality is different.”
In other words, to not wear a headcovering makes one’s Islam imperfect and consequently the Ummah is imperfect! Also, women who do not wear a headcovering are not pious. ::sigh::
Further:
“[this online community] includes Muslims who are NOT sitting in the masjid memorizing Quran 24/7. The ones who are not well connected with their Muslim identity are the ones who most need our support and encouragement. We felt that alienating them through the Hijab rule, was undermining our overall efforts of reaching and helping all Muslims.”
Again, Muslim women who do not wear a headcovering are weak in their faith and not connected with their Muslim identity. They also need lots of “support” and “encouragement” — I am not quite sure that telling these women that they are not good Muslims is a good way to support them, but it’s better than saying that they are not welcome on your site.
The issue has been discussed and debated on MuslimSpace and in Muslim blogs for a while. It has been used to harass some sisters. Several polls were devoted to it and it brought about the creation of hideous graphics defending their prejudice.
I am nearly convinced that MuslimSpace is a Salafist hideaway :-p, but this small allowance gives me hope that I’m wrong. Thank God.
Astaghfirullah, don’t you know that the hijab is the “Flag of Islam”? The head scarf is the most important issue for Muslims today, which is why it’s mentioned in the Qu’ran like….Oh, wait, zero times. Nevermind.
I just spent quite a bit of time with Chinese Muslims and was pleasantly surprised how little focus they give to the minutae some groups are obsessed with.
What a great comment. :-D
Salam Leena,
Thanks for your interest in MuslimSpace policies, although I personally think your blog took what we meant out of context.
1- We have tremendous amount of respect to sisters who don’t wear Hijab, and that’s the reason we didn’t want to alienate them from using the website. We are very satisfied with the results of the new flexible policy, because we saw a lot of new interesting people join the site making it a more exciting place for Muslims around the world.
2- The part where we tried to say the Ummah is imperfect was not referring to Hijab alone. In general, if a person fills his profile with ayahs and hadeeths and tries to act like a Scholar with everyone on his/her friends list while the reality is different is also included in my statement. This was partly directed at the ones who will object to the new flexible rules, reminding them that THEY are not perfect as well (every one has their mistakes even if they wear Hijab).
3- I am in no position to debate the Islamic rulings on Hijab, however I think there is no doubt that in our world today it is seen as a strong sign for one’s Muslim identity.
4- MuslimSpace is no Salafist hideaway. We are unbiased and try to cater to as many Muslims as possible.
I would kindly invite you to re-visit your position reflected in this blog after reading my reply.
Thank you,
MuslimSpace Admin (Mohamed a.k.a m12345)
Salam Mohamed,
Thanks for your reply. I accept and agree with all of your points and I’m glad you came here to make them. :-)
Based on my understanding of the tone and context of your blog, I still think my initial reaction was appropriate.
I think the derogatory tone of the blog can summed up in one sentence: “There is no use of acting all pious and hijabbed online, while the reality is different”
It may or may not be your personal opinion that non-hijabis are not pious but read alongside all the other scornful blogs and comments on MuslimSpace it just re-enforces my impression that many MuslimSpacers have a dislike for non-hijabis.
All that being said, I respect you tremendously for making the MuslimSpace community and being a pioneer and also for not banning me, I think there are a few people who want me kicked off (or silenced anyway.) Overall, MuslimSpace is wonderful and I love it. The hijab thing was a minor disagreement, that’s why I signed up and why I’ve stayed.
Thanks again.
Salaam Mohamed,
“I am in no position to debate the Islamic rulings on Hijab, however I think there is no doubt that in our world today it is seen as a strong sign for one’s Muslim identity.”
I don’t think that this is a good thing, necessarily (though perhaps it’s a semantic argument). I think there’s a tendency to view Islam in almost gang-like terms of confrontation with “the west” and the veil has become a symbol of this rather than a device of modesty. I respect the hell out of hijabis, especially when they go through airports etc. without uncovering. To me, though, the sign of a Muslim should not be our “colors”, it should be that where we’ve gone, we’ve made things better, we’ve brought peace and justice with us, we’ve left charity and wisdom in our wake. How often can we say THAT? It’s an unfortunate tendency in America to cling to identity politics, which is what I see the hijab debate is primarily being about. It’s much harder to live the Qu’ran Al-Karim’s wisdom in our daily lives (it’s hard for me, anyway), but much more worthwhile.
lol (id est, sunnis are funny.)
(sorry for spamming so much at once, but i haven’t had the time to come and read in so long!
)
i saw this guy (the muslimspace founder) standing outside the store i work in once, it was just after they had run an article [http://www.city.fi/artikkeli/Muslimien+suurmufti/2345/ ] on him in this (sucky) local paper, and i so wanted to go and talk to him–but then i endep up not going because i thought it would’ve been a little weird me running out of the store in my uniform… and i kinda don’t think my boss would’ve loved it much, either
maybe if i meet him off-duty… 