Hijabs ‘aren’t necessary for girls as young as four’ Campaigner defends school after dad challenges headwear ruling
ALEADING Muslim women’s campaigner says making young children wear the hijab is as bad as youngsters having spray tans and pole dancing lessons.
Shaista Gohir, of the Muslim Women’s Network, made the remark as she defended the Birmingham Catholic school which has banned a four-year-old girl from wearing the headscarf.
St Clare’s School, in Robert Road, Handsworth, has a strict uniform policy, including no headwear or scarf and asked parents of the girl to respect it.
But her father called on Birmingham City Council’s Labour cabinet member for equalities Waseem Zaffar to intervene, sparking the row.
However, Ms Gohir insisted that it was NOT a requirement of the faith for young girls of that age.
Ms Gohir says the hijab was designed to discourage sexual advances from men and so enforcing it on young children could be “sexualising” them.
“We challenge parents who spray tan or give pole dancing classes to seven-year-olds, so we should be challenging Muslim parents who make young children wear the hijab,” she said.
“I’ve seen girls of two wearing them. We should let children be children.”
She added that St Clare’s School in Handsworth was within its rights to set its own uniform policy – and criticism of it had been unfair.
“While schools do have to be inclusive, they haven’t done anything wrong because there is no Islamic requirement for a four-yearold to wear a headscarf,” she explained.
“What is the need to put a headscarf on a four-year-old? Because it is not a part of faith.
“I would personally not like to see it normalised for four and five-yearolds to be wearing headscarfs,” she continued.
“In the current climate there is so much negativity towards Islam.
“By saying it is part of faith, when it isn’t – or normalising it – is not a good thing.”
She explained that the hijab is not suggested until girls reach puberty.
“But as it is not a matter of faith, the school is as entitled to tell children not to wear it as they are to stop a child wearing trainers or even a Superman costume,” said Ms Gohir.
“Let them be children. They’ve got their whole life to wear a headscarf if they want to.”
The row erupted after Birmingham City Council’s Labour cabinet member for equalities, Waseem Zaffar, announced on Facebook that he was challenging the school’s ban.
Faith schools are free to set their own uniform policy.