Germany: TV Ad Encourages German Girls to Wear Hijabs

This is a short insight on the programs you can expect on both State and privately owned Television channels in Germany. In this advertisement, a veiled woman stands in front of a text that spells "Turkish women wear the Hijab". The woman turns to the camera and turns out to be a blonde German girl. She proudly exclaims that "I wear one (a Hijab) too, it's beautiful" before stating the Ad campaign slogan: "Enjoy difference, start Tolerance."

German taxpayers have to pay a mandatory State Media broadcasting fee to finance the government owned Television and Radio channels. All private channels belong to just three companies. This particularly Channel is called "Pro 7" and belongs to the Lavena Holding 4 GmbH which also owns other major Entertainment and News channels. The ad campaign was funded by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 2012.

Even if you can prove that you own neither a Television nor Radio, the state forces you to pay the fee. People have been imprisoned for refusing to pay it. In a recent case, a 46 year old German woman from Thuringia was sentenced to 6 months in prison for not paying her broadcasting fee, totaling 196€ ($220), for ideological reasons. Due to public outcry, she was released after serving 2 months in prison.

#HijabToMe is an everyday reminder of who I aspire to be. It keeps me in moral and mental check. It encourages me to put my best self out there. I love that Hijab makes it clear that I am Muslim because had I not been wearing it, it would’ve been hard to know. It’s an opportunity for me to stand in opposition to the regime of power that has misconstrued and negotiated the identity of Muslim women for so long. Above all, it helps me rise above myself (nafs) and allows for what really matters to shine through. What does #Hijab mean to you?? @huffpostrelig @HuffingtonPost #islam #women #muslimwomen #modesty #muslimah #huffingtonpost #hijabi #hijabers

A photo posted by Hassanah ElyaChab (@hassanah_pfh) on May 7, 2016 at 2:34pm PDT

I am posting to support @huffingtonpost 's #HijabtoMe on their great initiative to introduce diversity in hijab. Hijab to me reflects personal identity, and not where you stand in your religion. I am lover of bows and what they resemble so I infused it into my hijab and now my hijab style is reflecting one part of who I am. Hijab is never a sign of opression, ignorance or falling in the shadows of society. I am an engineer with a master's degree, a teacher at a university, a certified Yoga instructor, an occasional model and a Salsa dancer! Not one time, have I felt that my hijab is holding me back from something I would like to pursue. Freedom is all in the heart and mind and not in the body. We are not tied down by hijab, but by people's conception of how a hijabi should look and act like. I have travelled to most parts of the world and I have always been amazed by how beauty can be so diverse taking every shape and form. And muslim girls are no different. Every hijabi has a message to tell the world that she sends through the way she wears it. So let every girl write her message with her own unique brush! Photocredit: @juansanchezphotography #hijabtome #hijab #hijabi #turban #turbow #islam #freedom #headscarf #postagram #instaphoto #modeling #huffpostgram

A photo posted by Sara Al-Sharif @Fyomka (@sara__alsharif) on May 6, 2016 at 1:14pm PDT