Letters to the Editor
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wow, I usually get it changed to "Leeandra Nothing"...
...but I kinda like "Leeandra Revolting!"
I think Sikh boys have to wear turbans, and Rastafarians dreadlocks...if you want to get away from the "females in Abrahamic religions" argument about religious headgear.
My point was that if a girl is being horribly oppressed and abused by her religious fundamentalist family (of whatever religion), banning her from wearing her headscarf to public school isn't going to stop the abuse. All that's going to do is create even more of a "stay away from the evil secular world" mentality in her family.
There were a fair number of Pentecostal girls in my high school who, for their own or their families' religious reasons, did not cut their hair or wear pants. A few of them were in the high school marching band, which had pants as part of its uniform for both boys and girls. The Pentecostal girls had a seamstress make up long skirts to "match" the uniform. If the band director had insisted that they wear pants, they would not allow themselves/be allowed by their parents to march in the band.
Look, I don't agree with those religious dress and hairstyle restrictions any more than you do, but they really weren't hurting anyone by following them. Pick your battles.