FIFA should have overruled Quebec on hijab ban
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I recognize this, however the hijab gives no advantage nor does it create a situation for harm.
This issue could have been rectified at the local level by allowing a girl to practice her religion but instead we go with the popular opinion of being biased towards Muslims.
There is an underground hatred of Muslims and it shows in situations like this. I've been to soccer games where people have worn headbands, crosses around the neck, rings, jewelry and even a yamika....nothing was said.
They were all tolerated.
Card for intolerance TheStar.com - opinion - Card for intolerance
February 28, 2007
Like many Canadian kids, Asmahan Mansour plays soccer. The 11-year-old Ottawa girl is also a Muslim. And until this week, the fact that she wears a hijab, or religious head scarf, on the field had never been an issue.
But on Sunday, she was ejected from a game at a tournament in Laval, Que., after the referee decided her hijab was a dangerous safety hazard. Her team, as well as four others, rightly withdrew in protest.
The Quebec Soccer Federation has backed the controversial call. It says the referee, who also is a Muslim, was only enforcing rules set by the Fédération Internationale de Football Association, or FIFA, the sport's world governing body. Quebec Premier Jean Charest also waded in, suggesting the referee was right.
In fact, the opposite is true.
With this absurd ruling, Quebec soccer officials have blatantly violated the long-held Canadian principle that reasonable accommodations should be made for minorities and religious groups.
They also appear to be inexplicably out of step with the rest of the sport at a time when soccer is being promoted to females in Muslim countries around the world.
Before Sunday's game, Mansour had never been asked to remove her hijab in Ontario, and had already played two games in the Quebec tournament before being told to take it off or leave the field.
Claims by Quebec soccer officials that they were following FIFA rules simply do not hold up. The Canadian Soccer Association says neither it nor the world body specifically bans religious headgear.
FIFA's website notes players can wear "nonbasic equipment" as long as it poses no danger. It also features a 2006 article praising Iran's women's national soccer team for hosting its first foreign opponents, noting that while players wore head scarves and long pants, "the mere fact that it took place was rightly hailed as a huge development."
Yet this is not the first time Muslim women have faced discrimination on the soccer field. In 2004, a 21-year-old star Australian player was told by a referee that she could not play unless she removed her head scarf, prompting the local soccer federation to permit hijabs.
Canada's provincial and national soccer bodies should immediately follow suit and issue guidelines specifically confirming that hijabs can be worn during games.
And in light of the injustice done to Mansour, Quebec officials should also admit they were wrong and give her the apology she deserves.
http://www.thestar.com/article/186388
February 28, 2007
Like many Canadian kids, Asmahan Mansour plays soccer. The 11-year-old Ottawa girl is also a Muslim. And until this week, the fact that she wears a hijab, or religious head scarf, on the field had never been an issue.
But on Sunday, she was ejected from a game at a tournament in Laval, Que., after the referee decided her hijab was a dangerous safety hazard. Her team, as well as four others, rightly withdrew in protest.
The Quebec Soccer Federation has backed the controversial call. It says the referee, who also is a Muslim, was only enforcing rules set by the Fédération Internationale de Football Association, or FIFA, the sport's world governing body. Quebec Premier Jean Charest also waded in, suggesting the referee was right.
In fact, the opposite is true.
With this absurd ruling, Quebec soccer officials have blatantly violated the long-held Canadian principle that reasonable accommodations should be made for minorities and religious groups.
They also appear to be inexplicably out of step with the rest of the sport at a time when soccer is being promoted to females in Muslim countries around the world.
Before Sunday's game, Mansour had never been asked to remove her hijab in Ontario, and had already played two games in the Quebec tournament before being told to take it off or leave the field.
Claims by Quebec soccer officials that they were following FIFA rules simply do not hold up. The Canadian Soccer Association says neither it nor the world body specifically bans religious headgear.
FIFA's website notes players can wear "nonbasic equipment" as long as it poses no danger. It also features a 2006 article praising Iran's women's national soccer team for hosting its first foreign opponents, noting that while players wore head scarves and long pants, "the mere fact that it took place was rightly hailed as a huge development."
Yet this is not the first time Muslim women have faced discrimination on the soccer field. In 2004, a 21-year-old star Australian player was told by a referee that she could not play unless she removed her head scarf, prompting the local soccer federation to permit hijabs.
Canada's provincial and national soccer bodies should immediately follow suit and issue guidelines specifically confirming that hijabs can be worn during games.
And in light of the injustice done to Mansour, Quebec officials should also admit they were wrong and give her the apology she deserves.
http://www.thestar.com/article/186388
This isn't about hating on anyone. Have you played football? In my experience there is lots of clutching ang grabbing, our shirts are supposed to be tucked in. Loose clothing gets clutched. Imagine running down the pitch when someone tries to grab your jersey as you run past, instead they grab your hajib, with the way it's wrapped around the head it will :a) stop momentum from a sensitive area, and b) I can see it twisting as the clothing starts to give way. We wouldn't let a Sikh play while carrying a sword or dagger.
I wasn't allowed to play because I had two casts on my healing wrists. I would have played if it were allowed, but again it's a safety thing, not for me but the strikers who might have got a cast to the back of their head.
In Canada it was earlier than that but to be precise women got the right to vote here
in Quebec in 1940. Sorry I was off 10 by 10 yrs.
This might sound like a dumb question, and perhaps it was already discussed, but, would a girl in a Muslim country be allowed to play soccer, hijab or not?
It seems to me that living in a country which is not under Islamic law grants people many freedoms. But if their religious symbols get in the way of them exercising those freedoms, they need to consider finding a personal balance between the two realities. Is soccer more important, or is religion? Because soccer will never be safe to play if you have essentially a rope around your neck which could get caught and break your trachea. Christians aren't allowed to wear their crosses playing soccer either. It's simply not safe.
It seems to me that living in a country which is not under Islamic law grants people many freedoms. But if their religious symbols get in the way of them exercising those freedoms, they need to consider finding a personal balance between the two realities. Is soccer more important, or is religion? Because soccer will never be safe to play if you have essentially a rope around your neck which could get caught and break your trachea. Christians aren't allowed to wear their crosses playing soccer either. It's simply not safe.
Bingo! Some people just can't help but jump to conclusions. It's kinda like wearing loose clothing around a wood chipper.
Yes and no it is a matter of choice.
Christians not wearing crosses isn't against the religion so the point is moot.
If it's truly about safety then players must shave their heads.
you can argue all you want about safety but this goes much deeper similar to the town in Quebec making silly comments about what is allowed in there Municipality.
There is an underground hate, one that I witness on a regular basis, most of it being against those that stand out.
It's sad but nothing new, this has happened before and it will probably happen again.
I've never heard of a fatally pulled pony tail (except in an industrial context). Hair is on the head, not wrapped around the throat. Not the same thing at all. Although, that being said, I HAVE seen sports teams which put length limits on ponytails. Volleyball in my highschool was a prime example, since a girl jumping up to spike a ball risked catching long hair in the net on her descent.
Avro, the rules governing soccer state what is and what is not permissable. The clothing worn is generic, shirt, shorts, stockings, shin guard and footwear. If a player is going to wear a headband, there are again rules governing that, though I think they vary depending on the association. It's common that a headband cannot exceed 2" in width. The only jewelry which can be worn are medical identification.
This is akin to making a mountain out of a mole hill.