19 October
In this opinion piece, the philosopher and feminist Andrea Roedig considers the question of what the position of a Western feminist should be with regard to banning the burqa. After explaining the main tendencies that currently exist, she argues for a contextualized understanding of the burqa ban, saying that what might be right for an Arabic country may ultimately restrict women’s right in a European context. For a genuine feminist approach, the best example would be the “niquabitches” in France, who have succeeded in putting off both the secular state, with the upper half their bodies in a burqa, and orthodox Islam, due to their lower half being practically naked.
