Ep.53 France - Unveiling the Muslim Woman in Colonial Algeria with Zara Choudhary
France, like many European countries, was once a colonising force in the Muslim world. And like many of these countries, colonialism was sold as a benevolent project, looking to civilise the savages. France’s history is at times brutal, but the French also had a strong commitment to spreading so-called enlightenment values to the east. In the process, it sought to bring the good message of French liberalism to the Muslim orient. This French obsession remains true today, with the most recent proposals to ban the hijab for under 18-year olds and Macron’s so-called anti separatism bill – looking to further marginalise an already impoverished community.
But it’s France in Algeria that is the subject of todays show. Farhat Amin speaks to Zara Choudhary founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sacred Footsteps. Zara talks about her recent article "Unveiling the Algerienne, French colonial photography", which looks at the central obsession of French colonialism to unveil Muslim women. There are indeed many parallels to today.