LOS ANGELES, 7 January 2006 — Walking down the streets of Los Angeles people become accustomed to seeing certain things that they quickly brush off after giving one or two simple glances. Along the popular and trendy beach promenade you are bound to do the two-second glances and rubbernecking over and over. This is because on the promenade you will see people from all walks of life.
There are the usual bums talking to themselves as they jingle their change in paper cups. There is the gypsy man proudly displaying his psychic cat, who for the small fee of one dollar will tell you your future. On the street corner there is the young lady sitting silently on the paved ground next to her small gray bag of possessions playing a melancholy tune on her guitar.
She looks up only to retune her strings. Then there is the heavily bearded man reciting versus from the Bible while holding a large poster that declares in bold hand-written lettering: “God is coming for you”.
Indeed, there is an assortment of strange and intriguing characters to be found on the streets of Los Angeles to whom the locals seem oblivious.
Why then do some people still stare, and some are taken aback, when they see a woman with a scarf covering her hair and clothes covering all her body. Los Angeles is known as one of the great melting pots in America, so it is not unusual to find Muslim women who are muhajjabas (women who choose to cover their hair). Yet some Americans are still uncomfortable seeing women in this manner.
“I am sure the women who cover their hair do it by choice,” said Valentina Que. “But still when I see a girl that way, I can’t help but wonder if she was forced to do it. Maybe it’s from the media, or the stigma I have with covering hair. I’m just not used to it so yes I may look two or three times before turning away.”
“I don’t understand it. I don’t know what these women are trying to achieve when they cover their hair,” said Mark Gabeer “I don’t want to offend anyone. I respect that it is a choice I just don’t understand the choice. Because of that I am bound to think twice about it.”
Fatimah Bayona, an American-Indonesian woman and a local Los Angeles resident says she has covered her hair for most of her adult life. “I have gotten so many different reactions from people it has become amusing. Some people just stare shamelessly, others try and hide it. Some people are very forward and they will just come up to me and start asking questions. Others don’t care,” said Bayona.
When asked about her experiences with relations to different people, Bayona explained how she has been treated worse in some cases because of her scarf.
She recounted one incident where at a local mall an older man screamed at her and her family that they are “terrorists” and that they should go back where they came from before they “ruin true American freedom.”
“Events like that are rare,” she said with a smile. Being in Los Angeles Bayona knows she is fortunate because it is a place that has a large population of people who come from a variety of backgrounds. People are more exposed to different views making everyone more open-minded.
Yet many of the people who were approached did not understand the reasoning behind a woman covering her hair. Walking by a homeless man jingling his change and talking to himself is a strange sight. Yet people are more accepting of that sight than of seeing a well-off woman covered from head to toe.
“I am less likely to look at the homeless man twice because I know he has no other choice. The woman who covers her hair has a choice, and it is a choice different than what I would choose, that’s why it is strange to me. Also I see homeless people all the time,” said Que.
The question is then, does this lack of understanding equal lack of acceptance? From the people who spoke to this journalist, it is clear that this is not a case of prejudice or negative feelings to Islam specifically. Rather it is a question of accepting differences and one of quick judgment. People are judgmental creatures.
“We always fear what we do not know or understand,” said Carlos Joen, who admits to having made quick judgments when he saw muhajjabas, “and many are unwilling to step out of their comfort zone to try and understand the other perspective. I know I was that way until I met Fatimah and learned a little about her background and beliefs.”
It is a fact that prejudice judgments are made toward everyone and almost everything. It is human habit. We are all guilty of making a judgment toward someone else at some point.
The key point, however, is how we choose to deal with these judgments. Some people are not willing to look beyond their own views and opinions and thus act like Bayona’s aggressor. While, others open up at the chance of learning something new. Which attitude is better? You be the judge.
