18 TEACHING TOLERANCE DRESSING IN

SoliBY dILLUSTRATIONarity BY JILL E. THOMAS DANIEL FISHEL

THE FATAL ATTACK on Deah Shaddy assemblies, speaks out as the student money to bring dental aid to war-torn Barakat, Yusor Mohammad Abu- director of the All City Council Student Syria, Al-Olefi has plans to study public Salha and Razan Mohammad Abu- Union School Board and is the youth health with an international focus. Her Salha in North Carolina in February is coach for the Civic Engagement Club. ultimate goal is to open a community widely viewed as a hate crime against You might even see her skateboarding hospital back home in Yemen. She has Muslims. For Katebah Al-Olefi, a high across campus. She fits none of the ste- already drawn up the designs and plans school senior at Life Academy of Health reotypes of a demure Muslim woman. for operations. “Paul Farmer is my ulti- and Bioscience in Oakland, California, She is a go-getter, like the late Barakat, mate hero,” Al-Olefi says of the anthro- the tragedy hit a deep nerve. “Katebah already campaigning for the greater pologist and physician known for his was not okay,” recalls Amanda Issa, the good. While Barakat was actively raising humanitarian work. teacher-advisor for the Muslim Student So when Issa, who is the only Association (MSA) at the school. “I’ve Muslim teacher on campus, was con- never seen her cry so much.” Al-Olefi fronted not only with her own grief told Issa, “I’m afraid to be Muslim. I over the slayings in North Carolina, but can’t hide it. It’s all over me.” Can clothing inspire also the grief of Al-Olefi and the small Hiding is not something Al-Olefi group of students who meet weekly does well. She is ambitious, outspoken collective action? as part of the MSA, she said, “Okay, and a performer. She emcees school Yes! let’s wear the hijab so that we can say

SUMMER 2015 19 “I felt like there are people who care and that support Muslims. I felt more powerful.”

we aren’t afraid to show our beliefs.” sister of Katebah Al-Olefi, often felt mis- the crime but also because Deah Shaddy What resulted was a one-day action to understood. “Sadly whenever I talk, the Barakat, Yusor Mohammad Abu-Salha show solidarity with the victims: “Hijab first thing that comes in my mind is, and Razan Mohammad Abu-Salha were Solidarity Day.” Nineteen female stu- ‘Will they judge me because of my hijab? clearly making the world a better place. dents, two female staff members and Should I even be here?’” Marwat says. May their memory be lifted up in the one male teacher joined Al-Olefi and Al-Olefi has never let her hijab keep knowledge that young people like Issa in wearing hijabs for the day. her from speaking up, and yet Hijab Al-Olefi meet to talk about issues facing A few participants needed to do noth- Solidarity Day empowered her further. American Muslims today—young peo- ing but show up wearing a hijab as they In reflecting on the experience, she ple who will not be stopped by grief but always do. But for their friends and wrote, “As a hijabi … I felt so happy to are buoyed in their ambition to change allies, wearing a hijab was a new expe- see my classmates so excited to join us. the post-9/11 perceptions of Muslims rience. According to math teacher Rich It reminded me that there are people in in the United States and around the Boettner, “Students obviously won- the world who are not hateful and who world. dered why I was wearing a hijab, which don’t want to attack Muslims for wear- encouraged them to ask questions, thus, ing the hijab or practicing the Islamic Appropriation or Appreciation? promoting a discussion, one which faith. … I feel truly inspired by my class- How to know where the line is would not normally have occurred.” mates and I know that—as long as there In this story, only four of the partic- While 19 students is a small percent- are people like them—the world is a ipants were Muslim and only three age of the student body, on this day stu- better place, not only for Muslims but wore the hijab on a regular basis. At dents like Shaima Omar said she saw for everyone.” first glance, it could seem that Hijab more people “who looked like her” This sentiment was shared by Solidarity Day was yet another example than she’s ever seen. There are fewer non-Muslim students, too. Jamie of young people appropriating someone than 10 female Muslim students at the Ortega said, “With the hijab I felt like I else’s culture. Over the last year, many entire school of about 450 students. was standing up to the ignorance in our social-media news feeds have been She reflected, “After seeing all my class- society.” Another non-Muslim student saturated with offensive photographs mates wearing the scarf (hijab) … I felt wrote, “Wearing the hijab made me feel taken at African- and Mexican-themed like there are people who care and that really good because I was able to show costume parties (among others), featur- support Muslims. I really appreciate that, even though I am not Muslim, I ing students in blackface and brown- what they did. I actually felt more com- still support Muslim people.” face wearing ponchos or holding spears. fortable … and more connected to them. I The deaths of “Our Three Winners,” But there are key differences between also felt more powerful.” Similarly, before as they’ve become known, are tragic, not appropriating a culture and appreciat- the event, Marwat Al-Olefi, the younger only because of the hatred underlying ing a culture or acting in solidarity with

20 TEACHING TOLERANCE an identity group. It is worth spending some time on the differences. First, solidarity. Hijab Solidarity Day was initiated by a student from within the Muslim culture. It was done in reaction to an act of prejudice to raise awareness of discrimination against people of the Muslim faith, including those who wear hijabs. But is it OK to wear the clothing of a culture not your own when you’re not deliberately expressing solidarity? There is a thin line between celebrat- ing and exploiting another culture. The media consulting group Browntourage offers some guidelines in the form of questions to ask yourself to recognize if you’ve crossed the line: k What culture does this style ref- erence, and what is my relation to that culture? k Why am I wearing it? k Who made the product, and who’s selling it? k How accurate/respectful is it to the source? If the answer to any of these ques- tions does not honor or give back to the culture in an authentic way, has the label of a mass manufacturer sewn on it or gives you pause, then you have crossed the line into appropriation. Examples of cultural appropriation currently stocked at many stores near you include American Indian headdresses, “Navajo hipster” underwear, keffiyeh scarves, bindis and henna tattoos. Cultural appropriation is the same thing as treating someone else’s cul- ture as a fashion statement or a game, and it’s no coincidence that the cul- ture being stolen is one that has already been exploited and marginalized in U.S. society. To be on the safe side of cele- brating a culture that is not your own versus appropriating it, educate your- self but do not play “dress up.”

Thomas is a former English teacher turned instructional coach in Oakland, California.

TOOLKIT Put this story into action! visit » tolerance.org/dressing-in-solidarity SUMMER 2015 21