Yesterday, President and Mrs. Obama cut short their trip to India and attended the funeral of King Abdullah in Saudi Arabia. While this trip was described by The White House as "apolitical," there have been some politics surrounding the fact that Michelle Obama did not wear a headscarf. While at first this story seemed a little bit silly, I thought it was entertaining and an easy way to pass the time. I am on a flight to Dallas right now and I find myself continuing to read article after article about how the reaction to this might be taken in Saudi Arabia; could this have an impact on US relations with the Saudis; could this even factor into the Iranian nuclear talks. And as a Western woman, I find myself thinking about ideas and interests...and hair.
For those of you who may not have seen this story, here is the Washington Post's article on it: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2015/01/27/michelle-obama-forgoes-a-headscarf-and-sparks-a-backlash-in-saudi-arabia/.
So, as I have learned, Saudi Arabia has a history of relaxing the expectation of a headscarf for foreign guests, and it would seem that Michelle Obama was allowed to attend the funeral without one. There were a number of other female foreign guests who were also present without a headscarf.
So, what are my ideas here? What are US ideas, especially of women and our role in society? I hold very strongly to the idea that women are equal members of our culture, job market, and political bodies. It would seem that this is the belief of most Americans. In fact, earlier this week during the President's trip to India, he spoke about India's gender inequality, pushing forward the American idea of women's rights. "If nations really want to succeed in today's global economy, then they can't simply ignore the talents of half of their people," Mr. Obama said.[1]
As part of this idea, I believe that women should not be forced to hide in shame underneath a headscarf. If a woman chooses to observe such a tradition as part of her religious beliefs, then I fully support her choice. However, the oppression of women that has taken place by dictated attire goes against the idea of women's equality. President Obama enforced that idea, speaking in India on Wednesday. “Indian women have shown that they can succeed in every field Every woman should be able to go about her day and be safe and be treated with the respect and dignity that she deserves.”[2] I think a most basic respect for all people is being allowed to choose how you appear as you go about your day.
So, based on my ideas, I believe that Mrs. Obama should be allowed to wear whatever she wanted within an attempt to dress respectfully at King Abdullah's funeral. But yet, seeing her beautiful hair uncovered, my first reaction was, "Just wear the scarf. How hard is that?" I was surprised at myself. Women everywhere, of every culture, value hair as a very large portion of our outward expression of our gender and cultural identity. So the headscarf has always bothered me. Why should we have to hide who we are and celebrate something that is so identifying to the women we are? And yet, my first thought was that Mrs. Obama should have just covered up to make thing simpler.
I started to break this down and wonder what could have inspired such an initial reaction when it seems to go against the ideas, values, and beliefs that I hold as a woman. And I came to the realization that it's because I know the American interest in maintaining a strong and functional relationship with Saudi Arabia. It is an interest that has been the main factor, I believe, in most American interaction with this state. But, as Laffey and Weldes explain, ideas can be what motivates political interaction or policy decisions. And to assume that these ideas are just secondary concerns or peripheral factors is shortsighted and does not account for all of the actions that are occurring.
In this case, I believe that Mrs. Obama made a statement by showing her hair. She expressed the belief of the American women that we do not need to shy away from who we are. To think that she didn't have a scarf or was incapable of getting one to wear for this last minute trip would be naive. This had to be a decision that Mrs. Obama made. And I, for one, am glad that this very important idea is what was voiced during this apolitical trip to Saudi Arabia. I understand that this is not some major policy shift - it's not even a written expression of the First Lady's ideas. But Michelle's visible hair does affirm her position and I am very proud to have had a first lady who stood by the ideas of the American women rather than allowing them to take a backseat to political interests.
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I like how you related the idea of our inherent belief in gender equality as Americans to our foreign policy when addressing states like Saudi Arabia and India. The U.S. certainly has strong value commitments to gender equality, and is willing to step on a few toes to demonstrate that in its foreign policy.
ReplyDeleteChelsey ~ Thank you for this thoughtful and honest post. You got me thinking about items which, like the headscarf, have become in some places symbols of oppression. In fact, in places like Saudi Arabia, women's clothing is itself conflated with oppression rather than a product of it. I think it comes down to agency: The difference between Michelle Obama and many Saudi women is that Michelle had a very real choice as to whether she would cover her hair or not. Yes, as you rightly point out, it would have been less controversial (in Saudi) for her to done the headscarf. But as you also point out, she made a conscious choice that the message not wearing a headscarf would send was more important than other considerations. I personally think that the predictions that her choice could seriously impact US-Saudi relations is significantly overblown, but nonetheless, she (and her fashion advisors - we know she's got them) could have predicted at least some backlash.
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