Burqa Ban in France sets a dangerous precedence.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/french-burqa-ban-sets-a-d_b_849157.html

The ban takes France back into darkness when women were considered a Chattel, a property of men to be used any way they can.

Osama Bin Laden and his ilk force women at to wear the Burqa at gun point, where as the French President is forcing women not to wear it. Are women a play thing for these men?

Sustainable cultural change can come only though free will and not compulsion. I am not for Burqa and most Muslims are not either. But we have to defend the woman’s right to wear what she chooses. We must uphold the liberties of people and not force women to do anything against their will; to make them wear the Burqa or force them not to wear. We have to be pro-choice.

Burqa is not a religious requirement but a cultural evolvement and is a part of the daily lives of nearly 5% of Muslims in France and about 20% across the globe.  You cannot ask a Nun to wear lesser garments or even those who are from conservative families to wear Bikinis on the beaches. An Indian woman visiting France will not and should not comply with the demands of the French dress code in public places.

Is the French public drawing devious pleasure in reducing Muslim women to obey the laws under the guise of security? The world is silently witnessing evil in making. Aren’t we ashamed of our silence during the Holocaust?  Sarkozy is setting a dangerous precedent in the world. What if other Nations decide to go back to medieval times in robbing the liberties of the people for their own games?

Women have come a long way forward to find freedom from primates and now, are we going to let Neanderthal Sarkozy reset the clock? Who is he to tell a woman what to eat, drink, wear and believe?

I hope all the French women wear Burqa one day to protect the liberties of the ones in danger. It is the wrong law to have passed and we cannot have such evil laws on our books. 

First they came for Burqas and I did not care,

I did not wear the Burqa;

They came for Turbans and I did not care,

I did not wear the Turban;

They came for the Kippa and I did not care,

I was not Jewish;

The also came for the Cross and I did not care,

I was not a Christian;

Then the came for English and I did not care,

I did not Speak English;

Then the came for me and I Panicked

There was no one for me.

To bring about any cultural change in a given society, it has to be done through free will, particularly if it is not hurting or affecting others. Women have been wearing Burqa in France for a very long time and they should continue to wear if that gives them a sense of comfort, it is even more important today given the prevalent prejudices; we should not aggravate but mitigate it to build a cohesive society. 

Mike Ghouse is committed to liberty and building cohesive societies and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. His work is indexed at www.MikeGhouse.net

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Mike Ghouse

2665 Villa Creek Dr, Suite 206

Dallas, TX 75234

USA
(214) 325-1916

MikeGhouse@aol.com

Additional comments:

For women who are comfortable a certain way for ages, we just cannot walk in and "tell" them that it does not fit us and you need to change. There should be process of education but not enforcement. It is giving permission to other tyrants to be abusive to their minorities. Simply not acceptable - I am asserting that I am not for Burqa, it is not a religious requirement, but would not want any one to impose their ideas on others out of the blue.

The best ban would be ban on weapons and guns... terrorist use every which way they can to do the harm... what if the terrorists start wearing perfectly made masks that looks like Sara Palin, Hilary Clinton and others... you ban all women who are white and wear their hair the same way.... regulations is not the answer, change of our own attitudes in imposing regulations on others is the answer.

As I have said earlier some laws are downright wrong even if the majority approves it – California’s proposition 5, Farmers Branch on illegal residents, medical care for illegal residents, no Jews in Nazi land... stoning women (Iran) chopping hands for thievery (Saudi Arabia), harassing Sikhs in Afghanistan (majority rule and the stupid laws)... Killing for blasphemy (Pakistan), Mayans cannot worship in public (Mexico)... Terrorism will continue regardless and we have to work in mitigating it and not aggravating it.

As civil societies we need to hold the temptations to be mobs in the name of democracy; I hope the French speak up, if not they will be equated with Afghanistan, Iran and Saudi Arabia. That’s what the oppressive right wingers want, not the French public, it is time for them to stand up and be counted as good humans that care for others.

Notes made on Facebook on my question about the issue, there are over 75 comments within a few hours. http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/MikeGhouse/posts/10150578392510249

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