In the UK it's considered rude for people to cover their faces when interacting with you. Covering your face is also, in some circumstances, loveually provocative. Many of these Muslim women who are making a fuss about it are just showing off and enjoying the attention. It happens in all religions, there is a certain sort who want to go to extremes about it in a way that everyone can see, and it's showing-off rather than genuine piety. If they genuinely didn't want to draw attention to themselves, they would just dress demurely, long sleeves, high neckline, covered legs, and I'd say that's the better and more true Muslim in modern Britain. All the Koran actually says on this matter is "Cover up those parts which are usually covered up". In Britain those parts do not include the face.
I wonder how Muslims would like it if it went the other way. A woman is employed in a teaching job after an interview. Then she turns up to teach bare-breasted. "Oh", she says, "I have a strong religious belief that it's wrong to hide yourself, you should appear naturally as God intended".
Matthew Huntbach
