"Tired of fear" .. Veiled French speaking

At a time when the controversy over the veil strongly returned to the French arena after the scandal of a member of parliament's attack on the veiled, a newspaper counted 85 discussions on news channels with 286 guests, not including one veiled, although the veil they wear is the subject of discussion.

In this climate, described by the French newspaper Le Parisien as "humiliation," the newspaper interviewed six of these French citizens who listen every time to this debate that concerns them, without inviting them to participate at all.

Sara, Zona, Sabrina, Hind Safia and Enas, aged between 19 and 55, live in different parts of France and do not know each other, but they share the veil.

The newspaper pointed out that veiled women who agreed to talk to them about what they live daily as the looks of people in the metro, arguments and fears, all refused to show their pictures, even that many before them refused to talk originally because of modesty and fear of hate campaigns, and perhaps for fear of distorting their words by the media no longer trust In which.

The more controversy the veil becomes heavier
Sarah, 19, who dreams of opening her own clinic after finishing psychology at Nanterre University, says she wore the hijab on her own at 14, and she does it like her mother, who converted to Islam.

She wondered about the significance of the hijab, explaining that for her “relationship with God” she considers him part of. “I didn't expect any particular reactions, I think I was naive. What initially surprised me was the hostile looks at transport.”

She added that as a woman she should be vigilant on the whole, but with the veil should be double vigilance, noting that the more the debate about the veil, the "veil becomes heavier."

The student said that the ideas that promote the veil have nothing to do with the reality of veiled women, but nevertheless affect the opinion of the people. "Sometimes they ask me - no bad faith - do they impose the veil on you?" ".

Sarah concludes that she has the impression that politicians prefer to talk about the hijab rather than face the real problems of society, to make Muslims a scapegoat periodically. But I will not be discouraged because I made no mistake. "

Don't be exposed
"The climate is worse than before. We have nothing to do with the drama that is happening," said Zona, 55, a regional agent at a nursery school in Paris. "We are scared like everyone else. There are bad and sometimes evil looks in the metro. I never answer." About questions. "

Zona, who removes her hijab every morning when she arrives at work, adds that many believe that the veiled woman is uneducated, noting that she is no longer wearing robes in France, even though she was veiled from the age of 22.

Zona says some women are sometimes provocative by wearing the burqa, which is worn especially in Afghanistan and is banned in public places in France, recalling the intense fear of a three-year-old boy seeing a veiled woman wearing a black dress.

Tired of fear all the time
Hind, 22, who is from a Muslim family and is a master of sociology at the University of Lyon, says her spiritual journey began when she was about 14 years old, asking herself questions about faith, reading the Bible, the Torah and Buddhist or Hindu texts.

"I began to feel the need to practice daily religious rituals and to establish a connection with God to feel Muslim. I started wearing the hijab at the age of 16, which gave me a feeling that I was controlling my image and my body," she said.

Hind points out that some people in her family did not understand what she had done, especially her aunt who thought, "I am under the influence of my father, who I never talked to about religion. He even told me once that I would end up in Syria." Intolerable to consider the veiled minors manipulated by men.

"I was confronted with Islamophobia when I wore the hijab, especially since it is a visible symbol of Islam, so I wonder if I'm safe? When I look at someone I feel may be racist," she says.

"When I walk, I have documents on my phone about law and secularism to answer who can tell me that my hijab is forbidden. I am tired of fear all the time. But if I take off the hijab, I would be really submissive."

My neighbor marveled at me so much
Speaking to the newspaper, Algerian domestic worker Sabrina, 54, says she wore the hijab only two years ago, but she still mentions her fascinating neighbor, even though the hijab does not necessarily refer to religion. Her age and brings her closer to her roots.

Safia, 37, a Paris saleswoman, said it was the controversy over the headscarf that encouraged her to wear it. "I think it's courageous to be in front of the community and exercise your freedom. I didn't really want to be seen on the street as a body. I wanted to protect myself." I have noticed that I am becoming more respectful to those who approach me.

"When I started wearing the hijab, my husband didn't believe it. It was a bit embarrassing, and on the street he walked back two meters," Safia said. "She has no worries and the hijab does not stop her from making big sales."

Discrimination on networks
Inas, a 21-year-old from a Muslim family living in northern France, said that in everyday life she sees little attention but feels particularly discriminated against on social networks.

She pointed out that everyone is watching the rise of the extreme right, and that everyone declares loud and clear that he is racist and Muslim women "enslaved", which means "rob our free will and underestimate it to a degree similar to the state of things."

Inas concluded that there was a point to stick to: that wearing the hijab is not for provocation, adding that dialogue could be useful.

“I remember a conversation with a woman asking to apologize for the terrorist attacks,” she said, citing a woman who asked her to apologize for people who had desecrated our religion. everybody".