Can Freedom Entitle Oppression?- A Feministic Analysis of the Veil as a Phenomenon in Secular Societies

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Abstract In Europe, equality between men and women is constitutionally protected and the member states of the European Union are obliged to counteract gender discrimination within their states both according to the Treaty of Rome and the European Convention on Human Rights. Over the last years there have been several debates in Europe about whether the Islamic veil is consistent with secularity and whether banning the veil within some institutions would be to violate the freedom of religion or not. Some feminists look upon the veil as a symbol of a patriarchal structure within the Islamic community and some feminists compare the veil with a bandana. Since European women have overcome an oppression practised by the church for centuries in the name of Christianity, the passivity in Europe can be interpreted as if Islamic women are being treated as second class citizens. It can also be seen as a proof of western tolerance for multiculturalism. The right to individual freedom is highly regarded in Europe, but can the freedom of religion entitle opp...