[Reader-list] Adaab in the time of Allah Hafiz

[Ujwala Samarth]

Forwarding the response from Samina:



Dear All,

Sorry I'm a bit late in responding. Was away with erratic internet access.

Thanks Ambarien for your response and (your defence in response to Javed's
comment :). I think that it is indeed critical that there is a conversation
about these issues, a verbalisation of thoughts that may not always seem
perfectly formed. The article was written in that spirit. To recognise that
there are multiple stories and multiple layers in every story. As for the
burkha, of course, there are stories of how it can become an empowering
tool. Women managing to use it to get out of the house, or to do things they
would not be able to do otherwise. Stories also of eroticism and romance.
But I see this as a negotiation. And while I believe that women should be
free to choose what they wear, we have to also recognise the context of that
choice. So, yes, just as a pair of jeans does not necessarily embody
progressiveness, a burkha may not embody regressiveness. But for me, that
does not translate into the burkha being something more. I can accept it as
a negotiation but I cannot accept it as an act of liberation. I guess that's
where I draw my line.

Javed, you're right in making the correction. It is indeed assalam aleikum -
"asak" as it is being used on sms and email. But in spoken interactions,
syllables often run into each other and are not distinctly uttered. That
may, of course, in your opinion, disqualify many others from being Muslims
"worth their caps". And, while I stand corrected on the transliteration into
Roman, I hope that detail does not preclude you from the larger argument of
the piece which is to push for more inclusiveness even as we retain
particularities. This may never be an easy balance but it is what I believe
we need to work towards.


Best,
Samina



*Oh the thinks you can think up*
*If only you try*
* - Dr Seuss
*

Samina Mishra
saminamishra at gmail.com
264/1, Gulmohar Avenue, Jamia Nagar
New Delhi 110025


-- 
Ujwala Samarth
(Programme Coordinator, Open Space)

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