Beneath the Burqa - a Bruised and Badly Beaten Teenager

By Phyllis Chesler

A reader sent me a story Monday from The New Zealand Herald about a teenage girl who was badly and repeatedly beaten at home and who was then forced to disguise her considerable facial injuries, including a broken nose, damaged teeth, and extensive bruising.  I am no fan of the burqa and have even argued that the West should ban it. 

Daniel Pipes, director of the Middle East Forum, views the burqa as a security risk - and he is right to do so. Both petty criminals and jihadist terrorists have entered jewelry stores, banks, shopping malls, airports, and railway stations to commit evil deeds and to escape capture in this disguise.

So, yes, Pipes is right - but I also see the burqa as a sensory deprivation isolation chamber, (sensory deprivation is used as a form of torture); a burqa is also an ambulatory body bag and I oppose this with all my mind and heart as a violation of human and women’s rights. [more... ]