I think grown adults should be able to wear what the hell they like short of exposing their genitalia to people who don’t welcome it. Of course, it is equally valid for dress codes to be set as conditions of entry or participation. It is not unreasonable that a bank requires one to remove a helmet or balaclava before entering. Nor is it unreasonable that a swanky restaurant asks male diners to wear ties, or bans trainers, or that a building site requires employees to wear boots and a helmet.
It is not a breach of one’s rights to be required to wear a uniform in certain jobs, or to remove other items of clothing or jewelry in order to participate in certain activities. But what one wears in the streets or in one’s own home, one should be left alone to do. Having said that, I am under no illusion that the hijab is anything but a form of religious oppression. I find it particularly upsetting when, in the heat of summer, I see Muslim men wearing fashionable and season-appropriate clothing while their wives trail behind in a black tent. [Harry’s Place] Read more
