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When our respondents veiled abruptly in the middle of the school year, they resorted to
establishing their newly adopted social identity in public through speeches. Changing their look, and
adopting an often stigmatized social identity in Dutch context was a big adjustment which they felt
the need to stage.
Berna was the only veiled one in her school where not many immigrants attended, and when
the principal came to check on her whether things were fine regarding being veiled, she appreciated
his concern. However, she felt uneasy as she was getting curious looks from some students. Berna
felt the need to explain herself to her classmates through a class presentation for clarity: “I said to
the teacher ‘I will publicly address this issue once and for all’. I wanted to do that so I wouldn’t keep
getting asked all the time.” She also thought some students were curious but they were too shy to
ask. In a self‐assured manner, she openly discussed her veiling.
In a slightly different way, in the middle of the school year Emel decided to veil for the first
time in class on a day on which she was to give a presentation first thing in the morning. She could
have picked any other day, but she chose the day she was supposed to stand up at the board and
present. She was slightly nervous about its reception, but she had the support of friends surrounding
her on stage. “One other veiled Turkish friend, one Moroccan friend and a Dutch friend”
accompanied her on stage, reminiscent of a public inauguration. She said: “So I had my nice outfit on,
and I was so excited when doing the presentation. Like how it will be received… When I was finished,
everybody was like ‘You look good.’”
Donning the veil raised doubts about their belonging by both themselves and their teachers.
But these women immediately took the issue in their own hands by openly publicising their adoption
of the veil through presentations, demanding a stage and respect for their newly adopted identity.
Moreover, veiled students sometimes find themselves singled out and as the centre of
attention due to their religious difference within class discussions. Zehra explains how she feels
obliged to explain Islam to classmates:
The last two years I am the only Turk in class. Before, I always had Turkish friends.
When the subject comes to Islam, they all turn to me. Remember there was a film called
“Fitna” some years ago. At that time there was a lot of questions about Islam. And the
teacher actually asked “Do you want to tell us?” I said “sure, fine what would you like to
know in particular?” He said “Well you choose.” I said: “I want to talk about how the
Muslims look at the world.” He said “OK.” There were 14 in class, probably 12 of them
atheists. So I tried to rationally argue for the existence of God, with proofs. They really
liked it. Well two people openly mocked me; you know cynical questions…two atheists. So
I gave everyone documents. Just in case they feel like reading. After the seminar, they
came to me and we discussed for almost two more hours with some.
In such instances, our respondents find themselves as a spokesperson for their culture and
religion as in the last couple of years Islam occupies a central state in current affairs discussions. They
become the center of attention in class due to their social identity.
Here we see that Zehra turns her exceptional status into an advantage by using the opportunities
she is given to say more about her religion.
One of the ways in which our respondents strategize with regards to belonging is attention
given to their attire. To diminish the separating effect of the veil, they consciously put together their
outfits in a way which will not be deemed too foreign by the Dutch. Emel clearly remembers every
detail of her outfit on her first day of veiling in school;
When I was 15 years old, in the middle of the school year I thought it was time. So I
picked a rather small, black scarf from a Moroccan seller in the market, thinking; “well you
are in school, running up and down, get something that will be easy to put on.” The next
day I prepared this outfit for my first ever veiled day in school. I had baggy jeans on, you
know like rap style, sneakers, a blue tunic, and a chic blue jacket and the veil. My brother
teased me saying “hey you are all in black...” And I said “no, see I have some blues on
too.”