Shawana Bilqes is an 18 year old girl who wanted to attend Burnley College in Burnley, Lancashire, England. She was told by authorities of the college, however, that she would not be able to go there as long as she wore a Burkha. You can see a photo below and a video and tell us what you think.
Just in case you were wondering, Right Pundits is a burkha-free zone. However, we’re not going to stop you if you choose to wear them – we just may question your sanity, your body image, and your taste in fashion. That said, apparently a college in Britain has banned a young woman, Shawana Bilqes, from taking classes there because she insists on wearing a full burka, which covers her entire body including her face – leaving only a small place for her eyes. The staff at Burnley College say the reason they said no burkha was because they felt it a barrier to ’safety and communication.’
Shawana Bilqes told the administration at Burnley College that she would be willing to take off the veil as a compromise for identification checks, security, and the like but authorities said she couldn’t wear it anywhere on campus. Now Shawana claims the decision by the college to not let her attend there has left her humiliated and emotionally traumatised.
“It is my choice to wear the veil. I live around the corner from the college in an area where there are so many practising Muslims.
“I tried to compromise but they wouldn’t. The college sent me a letter to say I could continue with my course if I stopped wearing the veil.”
“We are in the 21st century and we get people from all walks of life. I’m in the police cadets as well and yet it’s not a problem wearing the veil there.”
Frankly, I would be tramatised if someone made me wear a burkha but anyhoo… Did you notice Shawana says it’s not a problem to be a police cadet with a complete veil on? Who is she kidding? Can you see her scaling a fence to chase a bad guy in that? Good grief.
At the risk of evil doers calling for a fatwa on my head, I find the wearing of a burkha incredibly demeaning and demoralizing to women, besides being quite ugly. We also live in an age where terrorists are using all kinds of means to breach security to disrupt our lives – even kill us – so it seems reasonable to me for the college to require their students’ identities be fully visable to anyone at all times. Male terrorists have escaped capture dressed as women in burkhas. Suicide bombers have been dressed in burkhas.
So even though Shawana Bilqes was banned from Burnley College for wearing a Burkha, she is going to try to pursue her education somewhere else. She wants to have a career in medicine which is a better idea, burkha-wearing wise, then say the culinary arts. We have a fun video below you might want to watch on how women who wear burkhas eat.
October 25th, 2009 at 12:13 am
could you imagine being to your clinic to have your blood drawn but the nurse or doctor holding the needle coming at you was dressed in a full magilla black burka? I think you would run out the fire escape and into your mini and drive rapidly away. so how is that going to work for her?
October 25th, 2009 at 1:08 am
I’m so sick of these whining ninjas. Look, if the place you pray to is so holy and sooooo good, buy a ticket and move there. We the English were happy with the way things were before your evil and wicked faith started to take over our green and pleasant land. Wherever you go in the world you cause problems. Obey our rules and laws and stop whining. If you didn’t get the hint, go away.
October 25th, 2009 at 1:56 am
its a personal choice to wear whatever she wants..grew up
October 25th, 2009 at 6:25 am
so I can wear an abraham Lincoln top hat and long grey coat to class? It looks no different than a burka at a football fields length except you might see some human features. oh, my god, imagine if we see human features in our burka clad classmates!!! Actually in our culture, its rude to dress so as to totally obscure yourself.
October 25th, 2009 at 7:32 am
Hey yozar, I want to wear only roller skates and go trick-or-treating as a pull toy. Is that okay with you too?
October 25th, 2009 at 7:52 am
With the level of radical Islamics growing in England and the amount of attakcs they’ve had I really wouldnt be comfortable not knowing whats under that garb.
How convenient that their religious apparel can also be used to conceal bombs and stuff.
Hell, you could have your friend take your final for you and no one would know.
And these people cant understand why almost all Muslim countries are 3rd world rejects
October 25th, 2009 at 8:35 am
[...] Shawana Bilqes Banned From Burnley College For Wearing Burkha … [...]
October 25th, 2009 at 9:14 am
janet reno might look good in a burkah
October 25th, 2009 at 9:14 am
or janet napolatano
October 25th, 2009 at 9:24 am
Janet Reno would look like a bean bag with eyes
Napolitanos head is so pointy it would look like a black klan gown
October 25th, 2009 at 1:39 pm
watching her eat is DISGUSTING !
October 26th, 2009 at 5:13 am
Atheists have long been salivating about conquering Europe for their cause, but it will not be. Europe is quickly becoming a Muslim continent by sheer birth rate power. Just as the Mohammed cartoon outrage a few years ago and the riots in France, we will begin to see more and more power shifting towars Muslims there.
October 26th, 2009 at 10:15 am
“janet reno might look good in a burkah”
What do you mean Might?
October 28th, 2009 at 3:10 pm
you all disgust me. nUmber one..she’s not wearing a BURKA…the burka covers everything completely leaving a piece of mesh to cover the eyes. she is wearing a NIQAB. this is something she ties around her headscarf to cover the remainder of her face.
she has her own reasons for wearing this and she feels comfortable with it. Muslim women are NOT oppressed. Islam did the opposite and freed women of oppression. example…
voting rights for women internationally were granted in 1948, do u know how long muslim women have been allowed to vote? Since Islam began.
Islam prohibits a man from hitting his wife. Many people are quick pull this up in conversation and make out that muslim men think of women as being nothing…yet in india, women were considered to be lower in status than snakes and even poison. It’s unfortunate that women are subjected to domestic abuse and violence, but this happens worldwide and every minute of every day, not just in muslim countries and at the hands of muslim men.
A muslim man will also be punished for every tear he makes his wife cry.
muslim men are encouraged to kiss their wives and show them love and affection, even the prophet [pbuh] would kiss his wife during fasting hours and before he would leave his home to pray. they are also encouraged to thank their wives and acknowledge all they do for them, be humourous and play with them, and not to belittle them.
unfortunately a lot of men, muslim or not, dont do this.
A mother, whether she is muslim or not, is extremely precious to anyone.
the reason why alot of muslim women wear niqab or burkas is out of self respect and the respect of their husbands.
any man happy to parade his woman on his arm in front of his friends and family when she is wearing nothing but a skirt which can only be described as a belt and full cleavage, has no respect for his woman. to know that you friends are admiring your woman’s body, and looking at her chest or butt while speaking to her instead of her face is shameful.
so to ban a woman from college fro having some self respect and dignity is also shameful.
many people are quick to jumo to conclusions about islam from what they see, hear or read in the media, and this is extremely arrogant. the media is a cintrolled environment, and those who control it can make you think what they want you to think. dont be foolish. research islam and the values of women in islam and you’ll see, there isnothing negative or oppressive about it.
November 2nd, 2009 at 8:57 am
It would be better for the Muslim sister to stay at home and take courses over the internet if she really wants to get a degree in something worthwhile and beneficial to her in her personal life and to her community and that is not a waste of time.
There is too much mixing of the genders at these schools and false ideas are propagated anyway. There is no valid or practical uses in life for many subjects they teach there. Not saying there arent subjects and degrees and certificates that can open up for one employment opportunities in the future and study of practical things like engineering which could benefit Muslim societies, but women are not responsible for providing for their families anyway… thats a man’s job.
Her study of her religion is much more important for her and her children she might have in the future, God willing.
She should not risk loosing her chastity or put herself in a position where she is mocked or insulted for her religion when it is something she doesnt even need to do.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:37 am
any man happy to parade his woman on his arm in front of his friends and family when she is wearing nothing but a skirt which can only be described as a belt and full cleavage, has no respect for his woman.
Ugh, are you serious? So what, we should be protecting women from the thoughts of other men? And you call that respect for women?
If a woman wants to conceal her looks to prevent others from thinking about her in sexual terms, then that is her decision. It shouldn’t be forced upon her by a culture that forcefully represses natural sexual feelings.
There is no valid or practical uses in life for many subjects they teach there.
Getting an education is not simply a means to an end; there is intrinsic value in knowledge and personal exploration. This is true for both men and women.
but women are not responsible for providing for their families anyway… thats a man’s job.
Wow. Take your ignorance and your bigotry somewhere else.
November 2nd, 2009 at 9:53 am
thank you rhay… well said.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:34 am
Rhayader said: It shouldn’t be forced upon her by a culture that forcefully represses natural sexual feelings.
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There seems to be an assumption by many that these women are forced to cover theirselves. What you dont understand is that many many Muslim women around the world voluntarily cover themselves because they want to please their God who ordered them to do so in order to maintain their shyness and chastity.
Maybe because you do not actually believe in anything or anyone other than yourself as is the case with many Westerners and Americans you think that this sort of garb is oppressive. What you fail to understand is that there are people in this world who are devoted and dedicated to things other than themselves and other than fulfilling their desires and whims. People who actually believe in a God and a Day of Judgment. People who do not worship and deify themselves or their own opinions.
What you may not know is that there are Muslim women out there who are actually forced by their sick and disgusting and deluded secularized families to not cover themselves and to not do the things they are ordered to do from religous rites sometimes even the Prayers, because their sick parents dont want people to think their family is “backward”…
What you may not know is that many many many of the women in the west who cover themselves completely from head to toe are actually western women and not immigrants or children of immigrants — many of these women are of European descent — their are white and black women in the united states who converted to Islaam for instance and choose to cover themselves. I wouldnt be surprised if Carmen who posted earlier fits in this category!!
And there are non-immigrant women in the West who have seen the disgustingness of this Western Society and its immorality and prefer the chastity and respect of Islaam over the disrespect of this sick western society which belittles women by making their bodies play-things for sick men.
Maybe if these women out here in the streets learned to put some clothes on themselves and respect themselves and reserve their beauty for those whom the Lord intended to see it, their wouldnt be so much rape and AIDS and other diseases and adultery and illegitimate children etc…
Even your ancestors in olden days Europe had more respect for themselves and their women used to cover themselves!!
And as for saying that the Religion supresses sexual desires then … if it supresses sexual desires altogether then why does the population of Muslims in Muslim Countries continue to grow so much… Do you think a stork is delivering these babies wrapped in a blanket!?
Rather the Religion encourages marriage… Thats where you fulfill your desires… not with other peoples wives and daughters who your not married too… unlike all but a few in the West!!
Yeah man your right … you do have to put some restraints on yourself if your not married… but nobody asked anybody to remain celebant for life!!
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:50 am
Sure many women voluntarily wear that sort of clothing, just like many slaves voluntarily remained on the plantations that purchased them. When information and freedom are suppressed, it’s not exactly accurate to characterize that sort of thing as a truly voluntary decision. By that rationale, the slave who wasn’t constantly trying to escape was willfully choosing his situation.
There’s little you and I will ever do to reconcile our world views. What you call “disgustingness” and “immorality” in the West is freedom of choice and diversity in my eyes. You say that atheists “worship and deify themselves;” I say we worship and deify nothing in the search for truth. You say parents who tell their children not to wear traditional clothing are “sick and disgusting;” I say those parents are trying to create a better, freer life for their daughters.
Look, go ahead and practice whatever faith you like — but don’t try to convince me to abandon my idea of freedom and equality in order to accommodate your beliefs.
November 2nd, 2009 at 1:06 pm
I find women dressed in this fashion disrespectful to our culture (indigenous british) It may be their culture to dress in this way, but I was taught that it is rude to cover your face when talking to someone. I won`t even wear sunglasses when in conversation.
I have visited many muslim countries in asia and my wife has been expected to cover her arms, which she does out of respect for our hosts…why is it O.K. to offend our culture?
At the end of the day the covering of the face is NOT a religeous obligation.
November 2nd, 2009 at 2:05 pm
I told you Mr. Hayader that western women — that means women who know full well about your supposed “freedom” convert to Islam and by choice cover up fully after having been in your state of “freedom”. They have plenty of access to your Anti-Islamic propaganda that you call “information” and they have heard your nonsense over and over and yet they choose fully, here in this country of America, to cover themselves and they choose full well more than that to worship God… Yes American white and black and Mexican women some of them named Amanda and Amy and Betty and other American Apple-Pie type names choosing service and devotion to Allah, the Most-Merciful Lord of all Creation Who knows what is best for His creatures, over slavery to Men.
RHAYADER’S FREEDOM = SLAVERY TO SATAN
November 2nd, 2009 at 2:20 pm
RHAYADER’S FREEDOM = SLAVERY TO SATAN
Do I have your permission to use that in my promotional materials?
November 2nd, 2009 at 6:19 pm
Why are people so ignorant about muslims !
November 2nd, 2009 at 6:19 pm
WHY DOES IT ALWAYS HAVE TO BE SOME IGNORANT MEN WHO WANT TO DICTATE TO WOMEN that they CAN’T cover themself ! Is this what you call freedom in the 21st century ??
Please don’t be so ignorant ! The niqab/burkha is an OUTER GARMENT worn over normal clothing which muslims wear in public like a coat . They don’t wear it mostly as opposed to how nuns dress.
Their beauty is something ’special’ & not for “all eyes” to see , except amongst family & friends. Muslim women are not objects to be used & abused . They want to be respected for their minds & not their bodies !
IT IS ABSURD TO DENY THEM THIS FREEDOM OF CHOICE IN THEIR CLOTHING. Jesus, Moses & Abraham were all muslims so it’s not some alien religion .
Sadly, Ignorance + Arrogance = Total Idiots !
N.B. THERE IS NO US & THEM ! It’s extremely racist to say to a muslim – go back to where you came from !!! This is due to there being many reverts & muslim generations born & raised in Europe & USA . They have no country to go back to ! ( Don’t forget that due to colonization there was a lot of migration. )
November 2nd, 2009 at 8:00 pm
Look I agree, people should not be prevented from wearing something they want to wear. I never said I agreed with the school’s decision. Also for the record I would never tell people to “go back where they came from,” as almost all of us came here from somewhere else.
I will say, however, that to many of us strict gender roles are a sign of repression and inequality. The US has an important history of discrimination, rac*sm, and sexism, and those are very sensitive subjects for us. A culture that creates two different standards for men and for women — or for black and for white– is something we’ve been trying to avoid for our entire history.