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Arab states: Muslim women remake their image

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Arab states: Muslim women remake their image

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When the stories and images of these thousands of diverse and complex Muslim women hit the airwaves, they not only shattered stereotypes, they also revealed the fallacy of focusing solely on the veil. These discussions have been counter-productive, divisive, and have perpetuated an understanding of Muslim women as exotic and different from non-Muslim women.

These revolutions have made clear that these women are not so different after all, and that their peaceful struggle for freedom of expression, justice, and equality exhibit the same ideals that underpin our country and Constitution. The important question, which had been obfuscated all this time by the discussion of the veil, was whether Muslim women had the right to choose how to practice their faith and express their religiosity. Their issues therefore were not gender-centric, and the only way to help them was to promote freedom for all.

To read the full text, please visit the Washington Post National.

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When the stories and images of these thousands of diverse and complex Muslim women hit the airwaves, they not only shattered stereotypes, they also revealed the fallacy of focusing solely on the veil. These discussions have been counter-productive, divisive, and have perpetuated an understanding of Muslim women as exotic and different from non-Muslim women.

These revolutions have made clear that these women are not so different after all, and that their peaceful struggle for freedom of expression, justice, and equality exhibit the same ideals that underpin our country and Constitution. The important question, which had been obfuscated all this time by the discussion of the veil, was whether Muslim women had the right to choose how to practice their faith and express their religiosity. Their issues therefore were not gender-centric, and the only way to help them was to promote freedom for all.

To read the full text, please visit the Washington Post National.

News