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Freedom or Oppression?:Scarf Standoff Splits Women
"For Esra Cifci, a 26-year-old Turk, wearing a head scarf isn't only an expression of her Muslim beliefs but also an assertion of her right as a woman to dress as she pleases.
For Canan Arin, a 65-year-old secular feminist and also a Muslim, the scarf is a clear symbol of the oppression of women.
Turkish law bans female citizens from educational and government establishments if they cover their hair for religious reasons. Among Turkish politicians and intellectuals -- mostly men -- the scarf is frequently at the center of the debate about whether Turkey is Eastern or European, Islamic or secular, traditional or modern. Last month, the simple piece of silky fabric embroiled Turkey in a political standoff that almost toppled the government.
But the scarf is also sharply dividing women's-rights advocates, here and elsewhere in the Muslim world. Islamist feminists like Ms. Cifci (pronounced CHIF-chee) passionately argue against the ban, saying a woman should be free to express her religious devotion as she wishes and wear what she likes. Secularists like Ms. Arin back the ban, saying if women in Turkey start wearing the head scarf anywhere they want, it could usher in a more religious society, hinder modernization and reverse gains made by Turkish women over the years. They scoff at Ms. Cifci and others who have framed the head scarf issue in terms of women's rights.
"This is a very ugly trick they are using," Ms. Arin says, adding their real motivation is to create a strict Islamic society.
In a 2007 Gallup survey, 45% of Turkish women polled said they wore a head scarf in public. In the same poll, 66% of Turks (both men and women) said they associated the head scarf with "being religious," but 38% of respondents also associated it with "freedom," while 26% saw it as a sign of "oppression."
What do you see it as? "For Esra Cifci, a 26-year-old Turk, wearing a head scarf isn't only an expression of her Muslim beliefs but also an asserti... more -
Religion and Its Role Are in Dispute at the Service Academies
Three years after a scandal at the Air Force Academy over the evangelizing of cadets by Christian staff and faculty members, students and staff at West Point and the Naval Academy are complaining that their schools, too, have pushed religion on cadets and midshipmen.
The controversy led the Air Force to adopt guidelines that discourage public prayers at official events or meetings. And while those rules do not apply to other branches of the service, critics say the new complaints raise questions about the military’s commitment to policies against imposing religion on its members.
Religion in the military has come under increasing scrutiny in recent years, especially because the close confines of military life often put two larger societal trends — the rise of evangelicals and the rise of people of no organized faith — onto a collision course.
At the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., nine midshipmen recently asked the American Civil Liberties Union to petition the school to abolish daily prayer at weekday lunch, where attendance is mandatory. The midshipmen and the A.C.L.U. assert that the practice is unconstitutional, based in large part on a 2004 appellate court ruling against a similar prayer at the Virginia Military Institute. The civil liberties group has threatened legal action if the policy is not changed.
But the academy is not persuaded.
“The academy does not intend to change its practice of offering midshipmen an opportunity for prayer or devotional thought during noon meal announcements,” Cmdr. Ed Austin, an academy spokesman, said in an e-mail message. Three years after a scandal at the Air Force Academy over the evangelizing of cadets by Christian staff and faculty members, students ... more -
The future looks bright!
This 14-year-old girl has got the right stuff. I admire her creativity, courage, and wisdom. Equality now!
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Mina's Way
Overall, Mina has an interesting life full of highs and lows. He has great friends, a great disposition, and a great story to tell. He has challenges in his life may it be social, financial, cultural, or school-related. Although he seems to live double life, Mina has plenty of time to be Mina.
Mina looks like your average student. He is creative, witty, and wears American Eagle. However, there is more than meets the eye with this young man. Moving to California from Minnesota gave Mina more freedom to find himself and be the man he is inside on the outside.
From partying five nights a week to performing in drag, Mina will help us experience gay culture in Ventura, California. We will see the good, the bad, and the ugly in this film. This is a culture that many do not see.
Overall, Mina has an interesting life full of highs and lows. He has great friends, a great disposition, and a great story to tell. He has challenges in his life may it be social, financial, cultural, or school-related. Although he seems to live double life, Mina has plenty of time to just be Mina. Overall, Mina has an interesting life full of highs and lows. He has great friends, a great disposition, and a great story to tell. He... more -
Xtreme Heart Painter
Jao is an "artist-athlete" who combines extreme sports and painting.
Wearing a helmet and knee pads, she paints a 8x12 foot canvas in
three minutes and twenty seconds with gigantic sponges. She also
wears a heart monitor, because she believes that she enters a special
altered state at a certain heart rate. Jao is an "artist-athlete" who combines extreme sports and painting. ... more -
White Ella Project Re-Cut
A few tweaks in the last montage sequence needed to be added as well as Aqua Yost's title card, but most everything else is in place.
Also, I was just watching the beginning and it doesn't look really good on the website. After class today, I'm going to put a higher quality on youtube and I would appreciate it if you would look at the re-cut there because it has really been edited exactly to the music and this low-quality on current.com doesn't allow you to appreciate it so it becomes not as captivating.
Enjoy. A few tweaks in the last montage sequence needed to be added as well as Aqua Yost's title card, but most everything else is in pl... more -
Words Are Not Enough for the Pain Inside!
Chronic Pain and Migraine Sufferers struggle to communicate with doctors, family and friends their experience and now people are turning to art to express how they feel.
In fact, two people have started an online pain gallery to help others understand their experience.
http://www.painexhibit.org/
Read article about exhibit here:
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/04/22/pain-as-an-art... Chronic Pain and Migraine Sufferers struggle to communicate with doctors, family and friends their experience and now people are turni... more -
Make A Note
Make A Note is a podcast that shows people the in depth process of songwriting, focusing on the different styles of songwriting and showing there's no right way to make a song.
This was created with my groupmates David Minard and Giancarlo Espinoza.
Thank you for watching. Make A Note is a podcast that shows people the in depth process of songwriting, focusing on the different styles of songwriting and sh... more -
Slave to Cigarettes
lungs, cigarettes, cancer, Ex'pression, dying, emphysema, breathing problems, monkey on chest, smoker, smoking, cough, coughing,
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For The Act
Team Finale follows Phil Wong, an upcoming actor who is still in high school.
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CHOCOLADE HAAS
Beauty in destruction. The video piece is one of my new favorites. Visual poetry.
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Word on the Streets ....
Very interesting look at street art and some interviews with the people creating it.
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Body piercing and stereotypes
It's a way to be different, in moderation.
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Soweto, South Africa by JR
street artist in africa finds the human element in a small town that has a lot of character and humble people.
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The Drinking Game Show
A first hand look at "The Drinking Game Show" that shows the drunker side of people.
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Welcome to Burning Man
Each year, deep in the Black Rock Desert, Nevada, a festival based on radical self-expression and radical self-reliance springs to life in the shape of a temporary city filled with over 35,000 participants. Current producer and Burning Man veteran, Justin Gunn, takes you on a tour of this weeklong experience that must be seen to be believed. Each year, deep in the Black Rock Desert, Nevada, a festival based on radical self-expression and radical self-reliance springs to lif... more
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Picture The World
In this Lonely Planet Blue List installment Toby Amies take us on a tour to see the top 3 places in the world to take the best photos.
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Expression
