Women And Safety
In the light of a recent incident in Pakistan related to child abductions and molestations — especially the recent case of the slain little Zainab, me and my wife were having a discussion at dinner. She was telling me about some of the female celebrities who are taking a lot of stick on the social media for their provocative dressing and how they were defending themselves by saying that we can wear whatever we want. And to her dismay, many people were actually agreeing to this ignorant excuse. This excuse is not much different from an excuse of a big corporation destroying forests for their greed and not giving a shit about environment, just because they’re doing it in a legal way.
As we discussed the things men and women can do better, in terms of setting the social norms and forming a better society, my wife argued, that in our society, even the women who dress appropriately, unfortunately have to face harassment at some point and level.
So I came up with this example without trying to refute her point. That dressing appropriately doesn’t go in vain. Imagine a person putting something really valuable out in the street, in the open. What do you think will happen? It will likely get stolen or picked-up by someone. There’s no doubt that the person who steals it or picks it up is a thief, and is definitely getting himself in a bad act, but don’t you think that the person who put this valuable thing out in the street in the first place is foolish as well? He definitely is.
Now there’s this 2nd person, who’s also put something really expensive and valuable out in the street, but he has covered it well, that the features of it are not very prominent and visible. What do you think will happen this time? It won’t necessarily be 100% safe, but it will surely attract much less attention. The result? The probability of being stolen or picked-up goes down significantly. 100% secure? Maybe not. Good idea? Surely.
ALLAH/GOD says (interpretation of the meaning):
“O Prophet! Tell your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to draw their cloaks (veils) all over their bodies. That will be better, that they should be known (as free respectable women) so as not to be annoyed. And Allah is Ever Oft‑Forgiving, Most Merciful”
[al-Ahzaab 33:59]
Want to know what’s safer than doing what this 2nd person did? Don’t put your valuables out unnecessarily. Don’t take them out unless you really need to. Now this is something I can get a lot of stick for from the feminists and from the people whose mindsets are TOO western/modern. But these are the teachings of Islam. My wife puts it beautifully in these two articles: Enough With This Gender-Equality Madness and Turn To Allah Before You Return To Allah.
Nothing knows creation better than the CREATOR. So it’s best for sisters to avoid going out when they can. And try to be accompanied with a Mehram (a male which is by relation allowed for women to be with) and cover yousrself in the best possible way to protect yourself from the monsters in disguise.
Don’t fall for what the Media is trying to preach that women shouldn’t be told what to wear. They have other agendas. That debate is for another day. Everybody is responsible for their own safety on a personal level.
Don’t be fooled by the impression that this only happens in Asia and Middle-East, and not in the west, there are plenty of cases in the west too, like the recent Harvey Weinstein scandal and Dr Larry Nassar scandal. Don’t get fooled by news and trends. Do your own research. So it’s not about the open or narrow mindedness, it’s about the laws of the nature and laws of the creator.
