Something exciting is afoot in Iran. Since 2014, women have been wanting to throw off their hijab and live more authentic lives. Led by journalist Masih Alinejad, many have taken to social media to protest against compulsory hijab. Using the slogan ‘My stealthy freedom’, they post photos and videos of themselves defiantly unveiled. In response… Continue reading Free hair as critical subjectivity
Tag: Hijab
Ambivalent Malay-Muslim Women: Why They Reject the Hijab
I’ve been asked to write a blog post for The G-Blog on women who do not wear the hijab as a ‘counter’ opinion to other pieces on women who wear it. During the editorial process of the blog post, I was reminded again how sensitive the topic of the hijab is and that ‘strong’ views… Continue reading Ambivalent Malay-Muslim Women: Why They Reject the Hijab
What it means to be a ‘free hair’ in a predominantly Muslim society
This is an edited version of a conference and seminar paper presented at the National University of Singapore in March 2016 and Australian National University in April 2016: Women who decide to remain un-veiled or ‘free hair’ (colloquial, noun) are a significant minority within predominantly Muslim societies. Their sartorial decisions are often couched in a… Continue reading What it means to be a ‘free hair’ in a predominantly Muslim society
Non-veiling and down-veiling narratives in Malaysia
Project statement in English It would be wise to establish that, in Malaysia, the dichotomy between the unveiled and veiled woman as oppositional and mutually exclusive is a reductive one, masking the shifting subjectivities of women who wish to unveil but cannot, women who remove the veil but choose to eventually re-veil, women who… Continue reading Non-veiling and down-veiling narratives in Malaysia
Thinking intersectionally about Malay women and the tudung
I have been thinking a lot about intersectionality and women who do not wear the tudung lately and it is not so much because the concept is de rigueur right now as I have been accused of not being intersectional enough in my viral article, Asal-usul obsesi Melayu dengan tudung (The origins of the Malay… Continue reading Thinking intersectionally about Malay women and the tudung
New column on the Malay Mail Online – Asal usul obsesi Melayu dengan tudung
For good reasons and bad, my article on the tudung was one of the most talked about pieces on gender, Islam, and feminism lately (social media metrics: 13,000 Facebook ‘Likes’, more than 6000 Facebook ‘shares’ and over 300 Twitter ‘tweets’). Piece is written in Bahasa Malaysia: Nampaknya perempuan yang tidak memakai tudung di Malaysia sudah… Continue reading New column on the Malay Mail Online – Asal usul obsesi Melayu dengan tudung
Alicia Izharuddin 