ENFERMEDADES DE LAS HOJAS A. Hojas total o parcialmente muertas

The data gathered revealed two differing groups of women who wore the hijab. These could be classed as long-term wearers (those who had worn it since puberty or

childhood), and new wearers (those who had put it on as an adult). If at the interview they were wearing the hijab, they were asked if they always wore it and if there was a time in their life when they did not wear it. This was designed to establish how old the women were when they started to wear the hijab. The women who had worn it from puberty or as a child had often grown up with their mothers wearing the scarf and saw it as a natural progression in their lives. All of the women explained that they had made the choice to put on the hijab in accordance with their Muslim beliefs and were happy to be wearing the hijab in Britain today.

Age Range Under 25 25 – 39 40 +

Long-term wearers from childhood. (A)

6 5 1

New wearers - as an adult chose to put on the hijab. (B)

3 7 3

Those women who had put on the hijab upon reaching adulthood could be further divided into two groups: converts (those who started to wear it when they converted to Islam); and those who had started to wear it as an adult after they had experienced an upsurge in their Islamic identity through a renewed interest in their religion.

From the interviewees for this research five of the women were converts to Islam.

Three were English in origin, one was French and one was Italian. One woman was a convert from Shi’a Islam to Sunni Islam although as she was already born into the religion of Islam she was not categorised as a convert in the same way as the other women who had converted from an alternative religion or had no religious faith previous to their conversion. For the purpose of this research and to achieve

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consistency, the word ‘convert’ has been chosen to describe those women who have changed from another religion or from atheism or agnosticism to Islam. Many of the women interviewed described these women as ‘reverts’ with the belief that all humans were born as Muslims and that when someone changes to Islam they are reverting to their original state.

Mrs BJ (new wearer, 40+) when asked about the terms revert and convert, explained:

Well, regarding this term you will find two ‘schools of thought’ or opinions. I personally prefer the term ‘convert’ because indeed I did convert to Islam from whatever I believed before. Others you will find may prefer the term

‘revert’ as they believe that everyone is in fact born Muslim or in ‘submission to the One Creator’, and it is their parents who bring them up as Christian, Hindu or Atheist (whatever) and in fact they have reverted back to their true

‘fitra’ or natural state of being a Muslim.

Mrs BJ (new wearer, 40+) converted to Islam in 1982 when she was working in the Middle East and had worn the hijab since then. When her conversion occurred she took on the Islamic dress of those Muslims among whom she was living. She explains that: The only understanding I had of hijab when I converted was the people around me. I have now adapted my dress to what I feel comfortable in. Her family expected her conversion, and as she did not have any non-Muslim friends at that time, there was no resistance to her putting on the hijab: I put on the hijab to try before becoming a Muslim, but once I was a Muslim I found it much easier. Mrs BJ believed that Islam was stronger in London than in the Gulf and it was not until she moved back to

England that she found true Islam. She also believed that 9/11 had had an influence on the increase in number of conversions to Islam. When asked if she thought that more women were putting on the hijab her response was: Yes, the ones I know are putting on the hijab.

Mrs BL (new wearer, 25-39) married a Muslim man fifteen years ago and then converted to Islam and started to wear the hijab thirteen years ago. She said it: felt strange to go from shorts and T-shirts to covering. When she put on the hijab she thought that people would look at her, but she realised that they didn’t bother, although her mother has asked her not to wear it when she visits.

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Mrs BK (new wearer, under 25) was brought up as a practising Catholic, although explained that there were some aspects of the Catholic faith that she was unsure about. In the summer of 2000 she converted to Islam after she got married: I started to cover by wearing long skirts and sleeves when I converted, when I got to know Islam in the summer of 2000. Through learning about the religion hers was a full conversion to Islam and she believed that her donning of the hijab was the right thing to do: It took me a year to decide, but I love saying look I am a Muslim. It takes time and is a big step. I do wonder what other people think. If a woman is not convinced, then it is not right.

Mrs BG (new wearer, 40+) had also been brought up as a practising Catholic, spending her schooling in a convent, and had converted to Islam in 1982 when she married a Muslim: I found it difficult at the beginning I was worried about reactions to my change, especially my family.

Mrs CA (occasional wearer, 40+) was brought up as Church of England and although she had been married to a Muslim man for twenty-seven years, she had only been wearing the hijab for seventeen. As an occasional wearer her feelings and motivations with regards to the wearing of the hijab were different from the other converts: Even though I take it off, I still consider myself to be a Muslim.

The majority of the converts had put on the hijab as soon as they had converted to Islam. This occasionally coincided with the women marrying into Islam, although in most cases the women’s interest in the religion had begun previously. All five of these converts were either married to or had been married to Muslim men, although most of these conversions had happened before they met their husbands. So, although being married to a Muslim man was a significant factor, it was not always the marriage that had prompted the conversion. With the exception of Mrs CA, the women interviewed had found their own way to Islam and the wearing of the hijab.

However, the dress of these converts to Islam was a significant theme. The converts clearly dressed in a more Islamic way than the women born into the religion and immediately after their conversion saw the need to put on the hijab. Once conversion had occurred they took on the Islamic dress of the community within which they were

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living and did not just continue to wear Western dress or Western dress with the addition of the hijab. They chose to wear a distinctive dress style that identified the women as Muslims.

Although Muslim men are permitted by their religion to marry women from other monotheistic faiths, these women clearly believed in the teachings of Islam and wanted to leave behind any previous belief systems that they had been part of to live a life committed to being a Muslim and their dress was adjusted accordingly. They were not content to embrace Islam and follow the faith wearing their original Western dress, but wanted to make an open show of their allegiance to their new found faith and make a statement to others watching that they were practising Muslims who knew what they should be doing as followers of that faith. It is a distinctive move into their new life as a Muslim and the rejection of the old life that they are leaving behind.

Almost as a caterpillar turns into a butterfly these women were emerging re-born into their new spiritual lives wrapped in their new outfits.

Some of the Muslims interviewed for this research had also noted how converts to the religion were dressing more piously than Muslims who were born into the religion.

Miss AD (long-term wearer, under 25) asserted: Reverts read up and know much more about what they are doing. Mrs BF (new wearer, under 25) added: I am seeing more and more converts that are doing better than us.

This new way of dressing meant that the women could be identified as Muslims and as such were more conscious of their behaviour when out in public. They were very aware of being perceived in the correct way by Muslims and non-Muslims and appeared to carry out the other observances of the faith with as much enthusiasm.

Bullock (2003, p.47) comments that a convert that she spoke to was also ‘concerned to be on her best behaviour all the time’. Although it was sometimes seen as difficult the women interviewed for my research often explained how they gained strength from God to follow his commands with the ultimate goal of reaching heaven when they died, knowing that they had lived as true Muslims on earth.

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The women who did not wear the hijab on a daily basis fitted into three groups: non-wearers (those who had never worn the hijab), occasional non-wearers (those who wore it occasionally) and past wearers (those who had worn the hijab or a flimsy head

covering and had chosen to remove it). If the women were not wearing the hijab at the interview, they were asked if there was a time in their life when they did wear it and if so, how old were they when they decided not to wear it.

All of these women saw themselves as Muslims and this was reflected in their answers. They all lived in differing circumstances, but the idea of not being seen as too religious was also voiced.

The occasional wearers were a small category and were identified by how they

described their wearing of the hijab. The fact that an interviewee had recently stopped wearing it on a daily basis, but still wore it to present a certain image to her employers in London where there was a very distinctive Muslim ethos, put her clearly into this category. Miss CB (occasional wearer, under 25) asserted: I used to wear the hijab, but I don’t any more. I took it off a little while ago. Mrs CA (occasional wearer, 40+) who was initially a new wearer, but then, became a past wearer, offered: I don’t wear hijab anymore, although I still cover. This group was very small as the women interviewed tended to make the decision either to wear it or not wear it and then stick to their decision. There did not appear to be a middle ground, and once you had made the decision then it had to be worn whenever outside.

Those who had rejected the wearing of the hijab as an adult included women who had worn a dupatta when they were younger, but not the fixed head covering. The

wearing of a dupatta was generally influenced by their cultural identity that had been

Age Range Under 25 25 – 39 40 +

Non-wearers from childhood. (E)

2 6 3

Occasional wearers of the hijab. (C)

1 0 1

Past wearers - had chosen to remove the head covering. (D)

0 2 2

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handed down through their mothers or recommended by their fathers. Those who had worn the dupatta when they were younger expressed the view that this was due to social pressures, and saw getting older and being able to make their own decisions, as a chance to take it off. Mrs DE (past wearer, 40+) stated: I didn’t wear the hijab as a child, but wore the dupatta. I was more or less forced to cover my head. If I went anywhere I had to wear it, Mother would say: ‘Put your scarf on’, when I got married it was a relief to take it off. Mrs EA (non-wearer, 25-39) was in agreement: My

parents used to tell me to put my dupatta on my head. I was so against it, I used to just put it around my neck. Contractor (2012, p.83) instead of finding responses from women who disliked wearing the dupatta found evidence from one woman in

particular who used it as part of her interpretation of modest dress. However, instead of wearing the dupatta on her head this participant would wear the dupatta ‘across her shoulders’ which correlates with the actions of some of my participants when they were at school and felt influenced by social pressures.

Immigration to Britain was a motivating factor for some of the past wearers to remove the head covering. The other past wearers were born and brought up in Britain, but had decided that the wearing of the hijab was not right for them at the time that the interviews were carried out. Some of those who came to live in Britain saw removing the hijab as a way of not standing out or attracting attention. They quite clearly stated that according to the rules of Islam, women are not supposed to draw attention to themselves and therefore, when living in the West, a Muslim woman should remove her hijab in order to blend in with other women in the population. The women were clearly making their own religious interpretations, and a motivating factor in this removal was the self-examination of their beliefs.

Mrs DA (past wearer, 25-39) emphasised: Wearing the headscarf here is bad for Islam. You actually get more attention here if you wear the scarf, especially wearing the black scarf on the beach. Mrs EJ (non-wearer, 40+) had the view: I usually wear this since coming to England twenty-eight years ago. I find it easier to wear Western clothes. I wear short sleeves in the summer. Mrs DB (past wearer, 40+) felt: If in this country the hijab will attract attention. As long as you are not dressing to attract men that is ok. Mrs EI (non-wearer, 40+) explained: I used to wear it when young in Pakistan. Mother showed me how to cover. When I moved to England I stopped

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wearing it. Bullock (2003, p.44) whose research was carried out in Canada, so will be culturally different, also backs this up with evidence from one of her participants who was concerned that if she wore the hijab and ‘wanted to work’ that she would

‘encounter too much staring and questioning on the subway’.