Perception
“People only see what they are prepared to see” (Johnson, Brian). This quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson portrays how people commonly see things only one way, giving them an incorrect view of events. What one person perceives as inhumane and oppressive, others may not feel the same way. Throughout my entire life I always had a certain perspective on things, mainly because that’s all I could have. You can’t really expect a person raised in middle-class suburbia to know anything other than that lifestyle. Most of my interactions were with people raised in a similar fashion so my experiences became limited to gaining my opinions off perspectives similar to my own. Coming to college has given me the opportunity to expand my viewpoint and has left me with the realization that perception dictates everything, and can often times give us a false understanding of a situation.
I am certain an explanation is in order, so here is an example; throughout a large portion of my childhood education, certain feminist ideals had been constantly taught. Gender equality was at the forefront, pointing to role models such as Oprah Winfrey and Hillary Clinton. These leaders of their respective fields helped prove that with hard work women could dominate politics or become one of the richest people in the world. We briefly touched upon women in other countries, mostly that they were in conditions more oppressive then ours, with barely any rights. One common example that we were given is that some women were severely oppressed to the point where they weren’t even aloud to show their skin. This was one of the best examples they had for showing the cruelties that women have to endure and being a young child in the public school system, I unquestionably believed what I was told.
Coming to Elon, taking global class has managed to give me many alternate perspectives, nearly revolutionizing the way I currently think. Of some of the things I have learned, one happened to be that contrary to popular belief, the burqa isn’t as oppressive as I had once thought. I have been taught that a lot of women feel safer, and even a stronger sense of freedom when they wear the burqa. They commented on how the burqa doesn’t force them to feel trapped by fashion and judgment from the opposite sex, a custom that western culture is very wrapped up in. On January 8, 2004 The Age ran an opinion piece by Fatima Shah, spokeswoman for women's affairs for the Australian Muslim Public Affairs Committee, in which she argued in defense of the burqa. She says, "Whilst the mystique of the veiled Arab woman has captured the imagination of countless Western writers and travelers, it has also captured the unwanted attention of a number of leftists and feminists who view it as a symbol of patriarchic oppression. Feminists have reached such a conclusion based purely on their ideology. Ultimately, the reason they oppose the burqa is because they wouldn't like to wear it themselves, so wrongly assume no other woman would either. When presented with the fact that most Muslim women wear it out of choice, the feminist will typically explain away this phenomenon with the explanation that Muslim women are merely brainwashed and don't really know what is best for them. Of course, in doing so the feminists show the same contemptuous attitude to the rights and wishes of Muslim women as the Muslim men they constantly impugn as oppressive" (Shah, Fatima).
Not to say that in all situations the burqa isn’t a symbol of oppression, but this common miss-conception of female suppression seems to be more rampant in society then just grade school teachers. During the afternoon of April 29, 2010 the Belgium government was likely to vote on whether to ban face coverings worn by observant Muslim women, the spokesman for a Belgian lawmaker said. If passed, the ban would make Belgium the first country in Europe to outlaw the face coverings, which include both niqabs and burqas. A niqab is a veil which covers the face, worn by some Muslim women as a part of sartorial hijab. A burqa is an enveloping outer garment worn by women in some Islamic traditions for the purpose of hiding a female's body when out in public. This following France’s president Nicolas Sarkozy statement saying “The full veil is contrary to the dignity of women, the response is to ban it. The Government will put forward a draft law prohibiting it” (Heneghan, Tom). Perception is everything.
But such examples of false perceptions come more often than at election time in European countries. Often times my knowledge is changed daily, especially when faced with a good argument. After taking critical thinking, I have come to realize that I don’t know anything for certain. When faced with a good argument, your viewpoint on a particular subject could easily change. Knowledge doesn’t need to be based in facts, just in logical reasoning but that doesn’t necessarily mean it is true. Even things that are “certainties” are really only certainties of the time. If you will remember, people were certain that the world is flat based on previous information and a good argument. With the information they had, it seemed to be a logical explanation yet it was completely false. More than likely, everything we know now will be altered or disproven in the years to come with the discovery of new information. With forward progress, new knowledge will be acquired giving new reasoning to explain the why the way things are and this will change what we previously know and our perception of our world.
“University officials throughout the country have entertained the notion that historically black fraternities and sororities, as well as predominantly white Greek letter organizations are possibly creating racial division on college campuses” (Wilborn, Artevia). This is the first line of Artevia Wilborn’s article titled Separate but Really Equal: The Misconceptions of Race Segregation in the College Greek Community. This is something that relates to Elon University, because they have IFC and PHC which are historically white organizations as well as NPHC which are historically black. It has also been a common criticism of Elon that they are not very racially diverse, something which I have noticed being on the school’s campus. But are universities officials correct in their line of thinking? This article, as well as through my own experiences has shown that this is not necessarily the case. Certainly there are instances where this separation may cause some racial tension, but generally it is not something that is a problem. In our current day, especially on Elon’s campus, tolerance is more of a standard and there doesn’t seem to be much of a racial dilemma stemming from these organizations. There are black students who are part of IFC and PHC organizations, as well as white students who are members of NPHCs. Ultimately the trouble only seems to be brought up, when someone like officials with an incorrect perception of the situation brings it up. Such problems like the banning of the Burqa and the perceived racial issues that come with separate Greek organizations come with a skewed view of the situation and with a different perspective, the individual will be able to make a more effective response to a situation.








Works Cited:
Heneghan, Tom. "France’s “burqa ban” and the “Sarkozy shuffle” to shape it." Faith World. N.p.,2010. Web. 15 May 2010. http://blogs.reuters.com/faithworld/2010/03/30/frances-burqa-ban-and-the-sarkozy-shuffle-to-shape-it/.

Johnson, Brian. "Inspirational Quotes." Philosophers Notes. N.p., 2010. Web. 15 May 2010. http://www.philosophersnotes.com/quotes/by_topic/Perception.

Shah, Fatima. "Opinion: Burqa Not Always a Symbol of Oppression (Australia)." Religious Diversity News. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 May 2010. http://pluralism.org/news/view/6665.

Wilborn, Artevia. "Separate but Really Equal: The Misconceptions of Race Segregation in the College Greek Community." http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/107938/separate_but_really_equal_the_misconceptions_pg2.html?cat=9