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Monday, July 27, 2009

Bus driver tells Muslim woman to 'take off mask'

Recently in Australia, a niqaabi sister was told by the bus driver she could not enter into the bus without showing her face, read what happened here


MashaAllah I really admire how sister Khadijah handled the situation. A lot of women would feel flustered and do as the man said and not enter the bus and feel defeated. Most of the time we summon the proper words and courage long after an ordeal is over. However, this sister stood her ground,maintained her composure, and didn't seem to get an attitude or be rude mashaAllah. She didn't break down, instead she tried in the best way possible to educate the bus driver about niqaab and let him know that she is just another average person.

22 comments:

Teer said...

mashaAllaah! =]

Sarah said...

wow sister thank you for sharing and that is very true. a lots of times when people tell me soemthing i think of how to respond much later!!!

UniMuslimah said...

Salaam alaikum,
Thanks for posting this; it's great to see a sister standing her ground in such a troubling situation!

Cheers!

Anonymous said...

I'm glad she stood up for her rights!

Desert Housewife A. (The Canadian in Jubail) said...

I left a comment... Let's see if they publish it :-D

Anonymous said...

You go Khadijah! This is a lesson for us all to learn from!!! No matter if we wear niqab or hijab or are just Muslims - male or female!

Anonymous said...

Niqab= mask. It doesnt make a difference who is wearing it, male or female, muslim or atheist. As a Muslim woman, i applaud the driver.

oooo said...

Wow, this sister can really stand her ground while remaining calm! That's so amazig, Mashalllah!

PS: Sister, I hope you don't mind but I tagged you.

Here: http://hijabiwannabee.blogspot.com/2009/07/got-tagged-again-xd.html

Batool said...

MashaAllah!
I just wanna hug sister Khadijah and tell her how awesome she is :D

ellen557 said...

As bad as this is, it actually got a bit of coverage in Australia (where I am) and thank God for that! We suddenly had guys on the "hip" TV stations blasting off about how 'niqabs weren't masks' and how it was amusing that the bus driver 'claimed to know as much as a lawyer on the Queens Council [highest law council we have]'.
It's wonderful how a bad situation has actually created a somewhat good atmosphere ^_^ And good on her for standing up for her rights!

Safiyyah said...

Salaams!

What's up with those eyebrows?!

Sarah said...

That's kind of rude Sr Safiyyah, don't you think? My eyebrows look like hers, what's even wrong with it???

Maryam said...

I think Safiyyah mentioned the eyebrows because plucking eyebrows is haram. Narrated by al-Bukhaari (4886) and Muslim (2125), from the hadith of ‘Abd-Allaah ibn Mas’ood (may Allaah be pleased with him). Maybe the sister was surprised by the combination of niqab and plucked eyebrows. Nevertheless, well done to sister Khadijah for defending herself against ignorance! May Allah guide us all and protect us from oppression.

As for the comment from 'Anonymous' - no, the niqab is not a mask, because it isn't worn for the sake of other people (or shouldn't be). Wearing lots of make-up... putting on a fake smile or pout... pretending to be someone you're not... these are masks. It is strange sometimes to encounter someone who covers their face, our human need to read a person's face when we meet them is not granted and this can make us feel nervous and intimidated. So recognise this psychological reaction in yourself, accept it, get over it.

Safiyyah said...

Salaams Maram.

JAK sister. That,s exactly what I meant. I should have explained and provided daleel like you did. Sarah - sorry I offended you with my comment. I need to stop commenting late at night.

Sarah said...

But how can you just assume that from seeing someone's picture??? My brows look like that and I never do anything to them. Many people I know have eyebrows like that and don't pluck! It's not permissible to assume things about your fellow Muslims without evidence! I hate when a person alhamdulilah does something good and someone overlooks it completely to pick out a flaw that might not even be. Someone stands up for their deen and all you can say is something rude about their eyebrows??? Subhan Allah!

Any anonymous is just trying to start trouble, no one gives a hoot about your comment loser lol

Anonymous said...

Salam aleikom,

i have a question about niqab. Im not attacking the sister's way of wearing it. I'm just wanting to understand the niqab. Does wearing niqab mean covering the whole face except for the eyes? Also the way this style is worn (in the picture of this post), doesnt that make it hard to eat?

Maryam said...

Sarah, I guess it's extremely unusual for anyone to naturally have eyebrows so shaped and thinned in such an abrupt line, rather than with the soft look of natural eyebrows (I've certainly never come across it before), one would understandably jump to the conclusion that they've been plucked. But you're perfectly correct to say that we shouldn't make assumptions and accusations without knowing the facts. May Allah forgive us for our unfair judgements.

Anonymous, niqab means covering the whole face except the eyes. The niqab is only worn in public where non-family and non-mahram men will be. Most of the time one wouldn't be eating in these places, or I imagine you'd find somewhere private to have a nibble. The sister in the picture is wearing a veil which is quite tight against her face, they're normally looser than this. I guess it must be tricky to eat but this sister manages it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTEN8_NCBwY :-) :-)

Yasemin said...

May Allah forgive us all. Her eyebrows do have an unusual shape, but of course we cannot be 100% sure as to the real story behind them.

Eyebrows come in all shapes and sizes, some of us have unibrows, some of ours look like Madonna's in the 80's, and some of ours simply don't grow out to where plucking is a must.

At the end of the day what is important is whether we are steadfast in prayer, memorizing Qur'an, and giving money to the needy. I was reminded of Aalia's camel hair post and again it comes back to priorities.

Good for Khadijah! I hope that they reprimand TPTB. Love you all.

Anonymous said...

Salaam Alaikum,

I am sorry but I struggle with "fashion" niqab. The gorgeous shayla placed just so, accented with a perfectly placed pin or flower or whatever. Not just this gal but in general niqabi fashion justs irks me. It says, "yes I am so totally hot and hip- but you can only guess how much! Because I am not for your prying eyes, but I still want to leave you wondering."

Isn't the whole point to increase the level of modesty? and to be quite frank the way she wears it does look more like a outlaw bandana a la old west bandits.

And the eyebrows are totally done. Again nitpicky, yes. But why adopt that which is only a nice thing to do (Niqab) but not do the fard things like leaveth thy eyebrows be? Why-

Lazeena Umm Yusuf said...

I didn't post this article and her picture for people to jump on her case and other sisters cases over niqabi fashion or plucking eyebrows. If my post were about that I wouldn't mind such comments but why do we ALWAYS need to jump at the haram or possible haram in something and overlook the overall message. There is a time for that and there is a certain way for it to be done, this is not the time or place. JazakumAllahu khayran

Pixie said...

I want to say all: If you waxed you eyebrows compulsively, they eventually (in some women) don't grow back. Many reverts who no longer pluck their brows, still have their pre-Islam brows because the hairs don't grow back the same.

on fashion niqab: I believe niqab of the sunnah covers the eyebrows because the Prophet's wives (May Allah be pleased with them) had only their eye rims showing (this is from the authentic ahadith). But styling your hijab so it covers what it must? This is halal. On mustahaab niqab, the more you are able to cover the better, and how you do it matters not.

Eating with niqab: different niqabs offer easier options for eating but this may be done for short times outside of the home.

Pixie said...

About the Aussie muanqaba: MashaAllah, you go girl, and you totally WENT the right way.