Hey y'all! I'm Amatullah, and I've been wearing a hijab full-time for the last 14 years of my life. With that, I figured it'd be cool to ask the BuzzFeed Community what questions they had about hijabis and the hijab in general.
Disclaimer: These are my personal thoughts and are in no way, shape, or form meant to serve as the singular answer to any of these questions.
Let's jump in!
1. "Why do you wear it?" —mikaelajswanson
This is a heavy question but not in a negative way. My mom has worn a hijab for as long as I can remember, and so have my aunts, cousins, family friends, etc., so it felt normal when I started wearing it all of the time at 11 years old. For a long time, I wore it because I honestly couldn't imagine myself without it. But now that I'm older, while I wear it as a sign of faith, I also wear it as a way for me to own my agency as a woman in that I get to control how much of me people get to see, not other people.
2. "Do you get hot in it?" —summer07
Nope! The great thing about hijabs is that they come in all different types of fabric, so during the cooler months, I'll wear something thicker, and in the warmer months, I'll wear something thinner. And let's be real: Who isn't hot in the summertime?
3. "Am I allowed to call someone a 'hijabi'?" —cailian13
Absolutely! It's way more specific than saying "a Muslim woman who wears a hijab," and you use fewer words honestly.
4. "Can non-Muslims compliment a woman on her hijab?" —emilyd41b36b9de
5. "Who can you take it off in front of?" —andrewgmcdicken
Simply put, the only people I can't take it off in front of are men that I'm not related to. So if I'm home with my family or at one of my female friends' homes, I'll take it off.
6. "Does wearing it have an affect on the health of your hair? Do you get headaches from wearing it?" —Poguesforlife?
For me, I haven't noticed a difference in my hair, but I try not to wear my hijab too tight or any fabrics that'll dry it out. But I have had friends who experienced balding or thinning because of it. It's not common, but it happens.
7. "How long does it take you to put it on?" — Anonymous
Truly depends on the style. My go-to style is to literally drape it over my shoulder, and it takes three seconds. If I'm trying something I saw on Pinterest though, give me like an hour to perfect it.
8. "How do you keep your hijab so neat?" —nekkonekkok
This scene cracks me up, marjan lost her hijab in the rescue and this brudda here was like "wowww" 😂 #911LoneStar
Pins. And backup pins. That's why it's so weird when shows have hijabis whose scarves just float off of their heads with the slightest breeze. It's so unrealistic. (Looking at you, 911: Lone Star).
9. "If someone's hijab falls off (like getting blown around or caught on something), is there a way for another woman to help her in that situation, or should they not?" —blondebowling04
Yes! You can definitely cover them to block other people from seeing them. This hasn't happened to me too often, but when it has, I've had really good friends who will form a circle around me or give me their jacket while I put my hijab back on.
10. "How many hijabs do you own?" —aurorgel
11. "Do you have a favorite hijab to wear? (I’d love to see pictures!)" — Anonymous
12. "Do you ever get frustrated that men are not required to cover themselves so completely?" — Anonymous
So I'm about to teach y'all something, and I want you to stick with me till the end. Hijab isn't just a headscarf. People in recent years just started using "hijab" as the default term to describe the headscarf Muslim women wear, but it's actually a state of modesty all Muslims have to uphold.
Men also have to dress and behave modestly as part of their "hijab." How many of them actually do is...debatable.
13. "How do you style your hair? Can you dye or cut it? Can you go to the salon?" — Anonymous
14. "Can you use anything as a hijab, like a scarf, or does it have to be a certain style/material?" — Anonymous
15. "Is it true that your face gets a ring of sunburn around it during summer?" — Anonymous
Not sunburn but a tan, and IT'S THE WORST. The hijab tan is inevitable every summer. The struggle is real, my friends.
16. "Have you ever considered not wearing it?" —A_little_bit_Anji
I would be lying if I said I've never thought about it. Honestly, when it comes to dating or even everyday interactions, I always think about how they'd be different if I wasn't a hijabi, since people always have their own assumptions about me just because of it.
But at the end of the day, it's not my job to make people feel comfortable and to change parts of me to fit in, so those thoughts go away as quickly as they come.
17. "If we see a hijabi being harassed, what is the best way to offer support?" —rebeccasnuggs
You can most definitely step in to de-escalate the situation. The reality is that while many Muslim women choose to wear a hijab, there's always someone who feels the need to harass or belittle us because of their own lack of understanding. It can be a very isolating and traumatic experience to be on the receiving end of an Islamophobic attack and receive no support whatsoever from the people watching it all go down. So as the saying goes, if you see something, say something.
18. "Excuse my ignorance, but I've often wondered what the difference is between different names for head coverings; I've heard of lots (e.g., hijab, burqa, niqab), but don't actually know the difference." — whydoesitalwaysrainonme
20. "Is there a stigma from your community if you choose not to wear one or to no longer wear one? Would you face backlash from your family/community if you wanted to stop?" — Anonymous
The stigma around women who don't wear a hijab anymore is sooooo real and not just in my community but globally to be honest. The reality is that many women are in situations where they are being threatened or harassed because of their hijab or they're being forced to wear it (which is considered un-Islamic).
And it's not uncommon that they start wearing it again at some point, but many are treated as if they aren't Muslim anymore, and it breaks my heart whenever I see it happen in my community.
21. "How do you swim or exercise while wearing a hijab?" — Anonymous
22. "Do you find it disingenuous that western hijab wearers frame their choice as feminist, while in other nations it is used as a tool of oppression?" — Anonymous
I don't think it's disingenuous per se, but I definitely see what you mean. It truly makes me sad and angry that there are Muslim women in other places whose relationship with the hijab is one of fear and control. Unfortunately, many Muslims will use Islamic principles and the Qur'an as a means to control women, like dishing out outlandish punishments for not wearing a hijab.
In theory, no one can be forced to do anything in Islam, but in practice, that's not the case.
23. "Do you ever get anxiety wearing it in 'high risk' areas, like airports, due to the association attached to hijabs and terrorists?" —Justcallmemac
24. "Do you feel represented in the media?" — Anonymous
Nope. It honestly feels like no one ever consults hijabis when they include hijabis in their movies or shows. They're always just plopped in so carelessly when it takes two seconds to find actual hijabis to provide actual insight into how that character would act. It's quite tiring.
25. "What do you wish that people who don't wear a hijab understood, knew, or appreciated?" — Anonymous
