Cultural Barriers
What about healthy invigorating sport?
But is everyone getting excited about sport? Not according to the organisation Sport England which encourages nationwide participation of sporting activities. Its figures show that Muslim women are significantly less likely to take up exercise compared to other groups.
Wait, you said sport first, then you made it exercise. Different thing. But never mind that’s not the part that caught my attention.
In addition, there are cultural barriers involved in the take up of sport as a professional career option for many Muslims, both male and female…Shahid Saleh, a young British Muslim who has five sisters, explains how he does not like the idea of them playing games. “I wouldn’t want them to play sports,” he said. “You’re not allowed to uncover yourself like wearing tracksuit bottoms and all that, and play football or badminton, you have to cover yourself.”
Oh, mind your own business, Shahid. Get your mind out of the gutter and leave your sisters alone; they’re not your property. But that’s not the part that caught my attention either.
Cultural barriers remain in taking up a career in sport. Twelve-year-old Zahir Ahmed says that his parents encourage him to study hard rather than to waste time playing.
That’s the part. Wait – studying hard is a ‘cultural barrier’ to taking up a career in sport? For one thing, careers in sport aren’t just lying around littering the streets ready to be ‘taken up,’ they’re extremely rare, especially at the big money level. But for a more basic thing, studying could be construed as something other than a cultural barrier to sport. It could, actually, be regarded as a good in itself as well as an instrumental good; it could be regarded as both a source of enrichment, expansion, understanding, critical thinking, skill, excitement, and as a tool necessary for a very wide range of jobs, such as for instance being a BBC reporter. So frankly it seems a little twisted to look at it as merely a ‘cultural barrier’ to sport. Some cultural barriers have a lot to be said for them.
Sticking “careers” in there does seem to queer things at bit (and makes the following sentence something of a non sequitur). But if we take that out, is the referenced “cultural barrier” really “studying hard?” Surely (he says), there is no inherent conflict between education and sports. Encouraging education does not require discouraging participation in sports, nor does encouraging sports imply discouraging education. Isn’t the “cultural barrier” parents who consider “playing” (at sports?) a “waste” of time?
Shahid said “You’re not allowed to uncover yourself like wearing tracksuit bottoms”. It’s hard to understand a mentality that does not consider tracksuit bottoms to be a form of covering.
And another thing about dear Shahid. He’s saying “you are not allowed ” in the sense of “it is not permitted”. However when using “you” in this way it applies to everyone. It’s as if he thinks the laughable restrictions on dress that he’s describing apply to him as much to his sisters.
“Sport” is a form of bread and circuses.
If people think they can make a living at it, or want to do it for their own pleasure – fine.
Don’t impose it on me, or anyone else, though.
One of the really bad bits of the Brit National Curriculaum for schools, is that you can’t get out of team sports/games until you are 15 – eurgggghhh.
Incidentally, I, who managed to escape at age 13, am now probably fitter, at 60, than all my sporting contemporaries, who are now overweight and sluggish, because all their young muscle has turned to middle-aged fat.
I remain failrly slim, and active.
There are not many subjects in which I have NO interest at all, but sport is one of them.
Going back to the original subject, Shahid seems as confused as any religious believer, but then what did you expect: rationality?
“Get your mind out of the gutter and leave your sisters alone; they’re not your property.”
Hmm… I have a creeping feeling that this ‘tradition’ (of making females wear body shrouds) has the subtext ‘don’t tempt us men, you know what we’re capable of if aroused. Best you cover up. Do it now!’ Far from showing ‘respect’ for the opposite gender, it indicates a lack of self control in men, the social cost of this abdicated self control is a restrictive dress code… which inflitrates and impacts on other freedoms… but not for the men.
Er, when there was the discussion about modifying rape laws in Pakistan, I did a fair bit of googling to learn out more about the topic. I came across this UK muslim youth magazine. The views expressed are, sigh, words fail me.
Hijab prevents molestation The reason why Allah has prescribed Hijab for the women is given in the Qur’an in the folowing verse of Surah Al-Ahzab: “O Prophet! Tell thy wives and daughters, and the believing women,that they should cast their outer garments over their persons (when abroad): that is most convenient, that they should be known (as such) and not molested. And Allah is Oft-Forgiving, most Merciful.” [Al-Qur’an 33:59] The Qur’an says that Hijab has been prescribed for the women so that they are recognized as modest women this would prevent them from being molested.
e. Example of twin sisters Suppose two sisters who are twins and who are equally beautiful, walk down a street. One of them is wearing the Islamic Hijab i.e. the complete body is covered except for the face and the hands up to the wrists, and the other twin is wearing a mini skirt or shorts. Around the corner there is a hooligan who is waiting for an opportunity to tease a girl. Who will he tease? The girl wearing the Islamic Hijab or the girl wearing the mini skirt or shorts? Dresses that expose more than they conceal, are an indirect temptation to the opposite sex for teasing, molestation and rape. The Qur’an rightly says that the hijab prevents women from being molested.
http://www.therevival.co.uk/?p=93
Surely a pepper-spray is more convenient?
mirax…. “the revival” ?? ..whimper…
I guess the figures accross international borders in terms of abuse, assault and rape are hard to come by. I mean in orderd to run a quantative comparsion type thing of where there are, where there aren’t such ‘cultural’ norms… that said, even if there was a prima face case (which I doubt, but hey) for showing the that hijab wearing correlates to reduction in said offences, is the freedom trade-off 1) supported by women and 2) does this trade-off result in untennabel reductions of other freedoms… so much conjecture, so little time… I guess the UN would be one place to start ??
Nick S : I have a creeping feeling that this ‘tradition’ (of making females wear body shrouds) has the subtext ‘don’t tempt us men, you know what we’re capable of if aroused.
It’s not a subtext. It’s an overt reason for veiling & covering (as mirax’s comment makes clear). Women have to remain covered so as not to inflame the boundless lust of men. Given that such a viewpoint reduces me to creature of impulse, I could, if I chose, be “offended” by the implicit accusation made against me by a veiled/covered woman. If I did choose to be so offended, would I have any recourse in law to complain about the slur… you know, in the interests of protecting *my* right not to be offended by anything, ever?
Life’s depressing right now, so please forgive my sharing a little chuckle. According to the BBC news web site, “Hurricane John beats Mexico coast “.
It must be a helluva fight. Anyone know which channel it’s on? And is it being promoted by Don King?
Frank Key – no, you are correct in that – but the actual reality seems so totally subsumed by the pr representatives and apologists , it feels like a hidden agenda
This is good
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,6-2335710,00.html