Introduction

In October of 2006, a public debate erupted in Britain over comments made by Labour MP Jack Straw about his veiled female Muslim constituents. Straw stated in an interview that he had asked women to remove their face coverings when speaking to him in order to enhance communication between them. Denying any objection to a simple headscarf, Straw stated that he felt uncomfortable speaking to someone he could not see, reasoning that covering the face defeated the purpose of meeting in person rather than over the telephone or by e-mail. Moreover, he urged his veiled constituents to consider the consequences their religious garb had in terms of creating ‘parallel communities’ and feelings of ‘separateness’. ‘Communities’, Straw argued, are ‘bound together partly by informal chance relations between strangers, people acknowledging each other in the street, being able to pass the time of day, sharing just experiences in the street, and that is just made more difficult if people are wearing a veil …’ (BBC 2006). The veil, Straw suggested in his comments, is not simply another form of difference to be encountered in the everyday life of communities, but rather, an impediment to shared experience.

Shortly after the Straw episode, a case emerged in which a young Muslim teacher was suspended from her job for refusing to remove her face covering. The case was brought to court amid a chorus of commentaries by Labour ministers about the dangers of religious extremism, the oppression of Muslim women, and the threat to social harmony posed by overzealous Muslims.