I Just Wanna Read the Rest of Some Guys Essay

THE VEIL PROBLEM

BORIS TKACHEV

ENGLISH 102

ROSEMARY R. REIGLE

The Veil problem

The question we were presented with in this essay is, In England in 2006 a Muslim woman - a British citizen - was removed from her job as s school teacher because she wore a veil. The stated reason was that the veil prevented her from effectively communicating with children. In my opinion, the dismissal of the teacher’s assistant that refused to remove her veil was not only justified, but necessary. One of the great things that set the western world apart is that we have laws that grant everyone personal freedoms to do as they wish as long as those rights are not used to harm other individuals. Great Britain, much like the United States has gone through eras of social problems but wisdom and common sense has always prevailed and rights are granted to all citizens. Taking this into account, we have to realize that the world’s demographics are always shifting and there has been a steady stream of Middle Eastern immigrants into Western Europe. Because the English Bill of rights provides citizens with freedoms that cannot be denied by the government, I think that Aishah Azmi, 23 was only acting in her right by wearing a veil that her religion regards as necessary for moral purposes. The Koran states, Quran (33:59) - "Tell thy wives and thy daughters and the women of the believers to draw their cloaks close round them" so Azmi (the teachers assistant that was fired for her unwillingness to comply with the dress code) was acting in her rights. With this said, there is a big difference between expressing your devotion to your religion by wearing a veil and wearing a veil in a workplace where it may hinder your ability to teach pupils. A school is not a factory; there are no safety concerns about wearing a veil in a school. The only concern of the head teacher at the Dewsbury School was that the veil was making it difficult for Ms. Azmi to communicate effectively with the pupils she was helping educate. The Kirklees School council noticed that the children in Ms. Azmis class had a hard time understanding their teacher during an English language class which prompted her dismissal when she refused to remove her veil. While many may jump to the conclusion that Ms. Azmis dismissal is an attack on Islam and immigrants freedoms, it is only plausible that her dismissal was just. While being interviewed for the position, Ms Azmi chose not to wear a veil and made no mention of it to the headmaster. I think that Ms. Azmi should have made it clear to her future employers just how devout she was and what they thought about a veil in a workplace. Many workplaces have a certain dress code you are expected to follow if you want to be employed by that company. It can be anything from a certain color of shirt or a certain type of boot but there are always rules you are expected to follow. These rules help increase your productivity while sometimes keeping you safe. That’s why I think that the veil is no place for a school where it will only interfere with your ability to teach. I think this issue shouldn’t be blown out of proportion because it is not an infringement of ones rights like some may suggest but clearly only a dress-code violation.

Reference Page:

Phil Woolas, Veil teacher 'should be sacked' BBC Sunday, 15 October 2006 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/bradford/6050392.stm Guide to understanding Islam, 2006-2011
http://www.thereligionofpeace.com/Quran/007-veils.htm