The Muslim Portrayal
The Dominated Female
Behind the Hijab
How do you identify a Muslim Woman?
I would be more than willing to say you would identify her by her veil, or hijab. These headpieces have become a major symbol for identifying the faith of a Muslim woman. What you may not know is that not all Muslim women choose to wear a hijab.
There is a large debate amongst Muslims regarding if women should be required to wear a hijab or not. Like with other things, there are many different perspectives. For this issue, many different interpretations are made out of specific verses from the Qur'an.

"Tell thy wives and thy daughters and the women of the believers to draw their cloaks close round them..." Qur'an 33:59

And say to the believing women that they cast down their looks and guard their private parts and do not display their ornaments except what appears thereof, and let them wear their head-coverings over their bosoms, and not display their ornaments except to their husbands or their fathers, or the fathers of their husbands, or their sons, or the sons of their husbands, or their brothers, or their brothers' sons, or their sisters' sons, or their women, or those whom their right hands possess, or the male servants not having need, or the children who have not attained knowledge of what is hidden of women; and let them not strike their feet so that what they hide of their ornaments may be known." Qur'an 24:31




Wife Beating
One reason why people tend to stereotype Muslim women as being dominated is that there is a disagreement over the idea of men beating their wives. Like many other religious debates, this one also is based from text.

"Men are the maintainers of women because Allah has made some of them to excel others and because they spend out of their property; the good women are therefore obedient, guarding the unseen as Allah has guarded; and those on whose part you fear desertion, admonish them, and leave them alone in the sleeping-places and beat them; then if they obey you, do not seek a way against them; surely Allah is High, Great." Qur'an 4:34

"And take in your hand a green branch and beat her with it, and do not break your oath..." Allah telling Job to beat his wife. -Qur'an 38:44
Women in the Media
In the media, Muslim women have often been portrayed in a very sad way. They are seen as being weak, dominated, and controlled. From them being referred to as slaves for the Muslim men in their lives, to places creating helplines and safe houses for the women, we can't help but feel bad for them. Do the women really want us to feel bad for them?
​
With the hijab, and the lack of knowledge the common public has about them, most people assume the women wear them because they have to. On the contrary, many women wear them because they want to use them as a symbol of their faith. There are also Muslim women who choose to not wear the hijab, but you probably wouldn't recognize them on the street.​
Media
​Media Examples
"Saudi Arabia: Women Kept on Electronic Leash as Virtual Slaves"

http://www.examiner.com/article/saudi-arabia-women-kept-on-electronic-leash-as-virtual-slaves

This article portrays a very victimized woman whom is carefully watched by her husband by electronics. One sentence states that at best women are treated as pampered children in Saudi Arabia, and at worst as simple slaves. This article does not give rise to any numbers. It also does not give any particular information on what the women whom live as "pampered children" or "slaves" is like. I feel that without this information, it is hard to relate or even imagine. What more this article needs is an expression of why the men are treating the women this way.
"Women 'remove hijabs to get work' as ethnic minorities face more discrimination"


This article puts a better spin on the Muslim woman, but still manages to keep her a victim. Muslim women in the United States are removing their hijab's in order to avoid discrimination. It is good to see that the women do have the decision to remove their hijab's. Sadly, the women maintain victimization when they are labeled with their religious descriminations.