Hijab Protects Adolescent Girls and Women from Sexual Harassment

Abstract In this article, we discussed hijab, from past to present and its role to protect adolescent girls and women from sexual harassment, to emphasize that the hijab is important not only for individuals but also for societies. Hijab has been applied in different forms in different civilizations and traditions since the era of first man and Prophet Adam (Alayhi As-Salam). So, hijab and seclusion were practiced in many cultures long before Islam. Studies indicate that girls and women encounter sexual violence in their day-to-day social life in all cultures and societies. Several school-based programs have been conducted for preventing sexual harassment against adolescent girls in many parts of the world; however, they are often lacking an evidence-based approach or testable hypotheses. Hijab is compulsory for women to save their modesty and chastity of all periods and times in Islam. Hijab provides protection for women and it is mandatory from Islamic teachings. Hijab frees women from being thought of as sexual objects of desire, or from being evaluated by their looks, or body shape rather than their minds and intellect. They have also boasted feeling self-respect and dignity when wearing the headscarf in accordance with their personal moral beliefs. Women wearing hijab have expressed that dressing modestly and covering their hair, minimize sexual harassment in the workplace. We believe that hijab is important in protecting adolescent girls from sexual harassment. Therefore, we propose that school-based programs to include hijab practice, should be developed to prevent sexual harassment against adolescent girls, regardless of students' religious beliefs, cultures, and social positions.