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IN AN ISLAMOPHOBIC outburst, former Foreign Secretary Tory MP Boris Johnson has made fun of the burqa. Writing in his weekly newspaper column, Johnson said that women who wear traditional Islamic garments – burqas and niqabs – look like bank robbers and/or letterboxes.
Johnson went on to give his opinion that head coverings are oppressive, and male-dominated governments force women to adopt this form of wear. He tried to redeem himself by saying that he did not support the recent ban on head covering which Denmark has imposed. However, this statement fell rather flat when he explained that the reason for his forebearance was not that he supported a woman’s right to choose her own clothing, but was a pragmatic move, based on a fear that the ban would backfire and fuel more Islamic radicalism.
In what may have been his first ever attempt to pose as being an Islamic scholar, Johnson announced that he could find no scriptural authority in the Qu’ran for women covering their heads. He went on to say that if one of his constituents was wearing a burqa when she came up to him, he would feel entitled to ask her to remove the burqa so he could speak to her “properly”. Johnson has not clarified whether he will speak to constituents on the phone, or whether he insists that anyone who rings up calls him back on Skype so he can see them while they talk.
Johnson was quickly condemned by Labour MP David Lammy, who said Johnson was fanning the flames of Islamophobia and – in a statement which was somewhat insulting to shoppers who use discount stores – called him a “pound-shop Donald Trump”.
Lammy’s criticisms were echoed by Naz Shah, Labour’s Shadow Equalities Minister, who said that Johnson’s comments should not just be laughed off. She called on Theresa May to condemn his words, which amounted to blatant Islamophobia.
For her part. Prime Minister Theresa May said that she did not support a ban on wearing veils in public, as it would not be in keeping with British values of religious tolerance and gender equality.
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