2012-08-26, 02:46 AM
Flonne Wrote:Because they are indoctrinated from birth to feel that way. A person who has never heard anything other than that they are less than a person will obviously not feel that they are more than that. In fact, if they DO feel that way, they will be ashamed of themselves and think they are arrogant. It's a terrible system of oppression, really.
Just a little anecdote about why this is not necessarily true. I had a friend in high school from the Speech and Debate team. She was born in the US, but decided to visit her parents' native Morocco. After her visit, she chose to begin wearing a what I would describe as a head scarf. As this was in Speech and Debate, we of course questioned (politely) about the sudden change. For her, the visit taught her a lot about the culture her family came from and that wearing the scarf represented pride in her culture. Her parents in no way forced her to do this. There was no law requiring upon her return to California.
That said, she was practical about it. She didn't wear it while running for track. I don't mean for this to represent all or even many Islamic or Middle Eastern cultural/religious practices. My step-mother is from Iran and has a definite mixture of pride and disgust about things that happen there.
I think it comes down to a very simple issue. Adherence to these practices MUST be choice, not law or other threat of consequences. The issue of indoctrination is complicated, but I can say with some confidence that not all of practices which most Westerners criticize are forced.
To return to the original article, I cannot help, but fault the teacher. Cutting someone's fair without permission and with the possible threat of academic consequences is abhorrent and would be considered criminal where I live (USA). It's assault plain and simple. It is the parent's responsibility to ensure the child is appropriately prepared for school in accordance with whatever the local rules are.
If you want to argue about the necessity of school uniformity, I believe that it should only matter in business relations with customers. I never personally found clothing a distraction or even an interest. Whether I was in uniform or not had absolutely nothing to do with my academic performance and that should be the only thing that matters in a public school.
I understand why it is relevant in business. If your job involves direct relations with the customer in any way, you should conform to their expectations for professionalism because it is your JOB to make them happy. Fortunately, I'm only expected to be "California casual", khakis and collared shirt. I wouldn't relish having to deal with anything more formal.
In a perfect world, everyone would think logically and judge on performance not appearance.
This is not that world.