Justice for Iran

Egyptian women’s group calls on men to try the veil

“For me, the veil is not a personal choice in Egypt, but the result of social and religious pressure. The girls I know who wear the veil do so because of their families or to avoid being hassled in the street. I don’t see why we should always dictate what women must wear and never what men must wear.

The other reason I launched this page is because society still considers women as sex objects. [83% of Egyptian women claim to have been victims of sexual harassment. Some women feel that the veil is a necessary form of protection against assault]. Many people, even on television, denounce the harassment of women in Egypt, but in my opinion this is not enough. Obviously, I have been attacked and insulted because of this Facebook page. Some Internet users have responded to me by citing verses of the Koran. I realize that this is shocking for a conservative society like ours, but I am not going to change my ideas because of that.”

— Aliaa El Mahdy, a university student & administrator of “Resounding Cries” FB page