Muslim Hijab Goes Mainstream in the UK

One of the most distinctive features of Islamic society is the style of clothing worn, especially by women. While there is some variation, the ultra-conservative features of women’s clothing render that style instantly recognizable. It also sends a message as to the relationship between the sexes — a message that does not resonate well in contemporary Western cultures. Try as they might, the politically-correct liberals cannot reconcile liberal Western beliefs and practices relating to women with those of traditional Islam.

We begin with the introduction of the distinctive style of Muslim dress for women.

Debenhams is set to become the first major UK department store to sell hijabs as part of a new range of Muslim clothing.

The chain store will introduce the new line in its flagship Oxford Street branch, before being rolled out to its Birmingham’s Bullring, Westfield in Shepherd’s Bush, Manchester’s Trafford Centre and Leicester’s Highcross Shopping Centre outlets.

The selection will offer tops, dresses, jumpsuits, kimono wraps, caps, hijab pins and headscarves.

An outlet of clothing brand Aab, which specialises in conservative clothing, it describes itself as selling ‘contemporary modest wear’ for women.

Nothing wrong with that, per se, provided that it is not a style that is somehow forced on women who choose to dress otherwise. That said, in traditional Islamic nations, that choice is often not an option.

The hijab is a form of covering worn by Muslim women, and covers the head and neck.

It differs from the niqab which covers the face leaving only the eyes visible, and the burqa which covers the entire face.

The move has been met with horror by some, but praised for its inclusiveness by others.

The issue of women’s clothing styles perhaps reaches its most controversial point in the choice of swimwear.

Last March fellow department store Marks & Spencer stocked burkinis for the first time, retailing at £49.50.  The swimwear was described as a covering for “the whole body with the exception of the face, hands and feet, without compromising on style”.

There has been controversy in recent years over Muslim dress, with several European countries moving to ban burqas in public spaces.

The Netherlands, France, Belgium and Bulgaria have all introduced burqa bans in some form.

France also enforced a burkini ban on beaches, particularly in the Riviera, leading to an outcry last summer.

There are those within Islam who have very strong beliefs on the proper clothing for women. The question to ask those who push for more immigration from Muslim nations is how they will react when male Muslim leaders insist that all women follow the prescribed Islamic dress code so as not to offend the sensibilities of Muslim men and boys.

This is not a hypothetical question. There are already those in leadership in Muslim circles in America who are openly advocating for the imposition of Muslim Sharia law with all its dress codes. Are Americans prepared to throw out their understanding of matters of culture as well as Western political beliefs to accommodate the demands of their new Muslim neighbors?

The UK is on track to be a Muslim majority nation by 2050:

 

Case in point, a fact check by the UK’s Channel 4 on The Commentator’s piece on the UK’s Islamic demographics.

The Commentator wrote that,

 By the year 2050, in a mere 37 years, Britain will be a majority Muslim nation.

This projection is based on reasonably good data. Between 2004 and 2008, the Muslim population of the UK grew at an annual rate of 6.7 percent, making Muslims 4 percent of the population in 2008. Extrapolating from those figures would mean that the Muslim population in 2020 would be 8 percent, 15 percent in 2030, 28 percent in 2040 and finally, in 2050, the Muslim population of the UK would exceed 50 percent of the total population.

Channel 4 responded that Muslim fertility would decline and “FactCheck wouldn’t bet on the British Muslim population ever topping 10 per cent, let alone 50 per cent.”

That was written in 2013. The current numbers among schoolchildren however show that among the next generation, they’re already almost there.

One in 12 schoolchildren in England and Wales are now officially classed as Muslim after a decade which saw the number of followers of Islam surge by just over 1.1 million, according to the most detailed study of its kind ever published.

That is up from just under 1.6 million in 2001 – a 75 per cent jump.

At a time when the wider population is ageing rapidly, half of British Muslims are under the age of 25 and a third are under 15.

Here’s a nice little graph of demographic doom.

In the 0-4 age group, Muslims are fast approaching the 10 percent mark. And those are the only numbers that count.

Looking at an overall population snapshot tells us very little that’s useful. The numbers that matter show what the next generation will look like. Muslims are hardly a blip among seniors, but the birth rates tell the real story.

Channel 4 argued that Muslim birth rates will decline. That’s the fashionable prediction and even some critics of Islam believe it. But while they no doubt will decline, the decline will still keep them well ahead of native birth rates and immigration will more than make up the difference. To argue otherwise is to insist that Pakistani and Bangladeshi birth rates will decline because Muslim birth rates in Iran have. It’s a weak argument.

By 2050, the 65+ part of the graph will look like the 0-4 one does. Meanwhile the 0-4 numbers will be staggering.

If the UK does not take control of its immigration, it will be gone long before 2050. Ditto for the rest of Europe, for Canada, Australia and the United States.

Source: The Independent, FrontPageMag