Haydar's "Veiled Intentions"

Background Information

- Published in 2003

- This essay appeared in Body Outlaws: Rewriting the Rules of Beauty and Body Image.

- Edited by Ophira Edut 

- Maysan Haydar was born in 1977 in Flint, Michigan and is an outspoken feminist. 

Main Claims and Evidence

- Many Muslim women choose to wear the veil because they believe it can reduce objectification and allow for men and women to have strong relationships.

- The veil can help eliminate certain damaging experiences such as cat calling

- Evidence: her experiences walking past construction sites and at school

Strategies 

- Haydar identifies and refutes opposing views. Which makes her argument pretty strong but it might make people think her argument is very opinionated.

- Haydar also makes herself very relatable to other people who might feel like outsiders.

Response to Kristof's "Do We Have the Courage to Stop This?"

Nicholas D. Kristof, a Harvard graduate, and author of the short text “Do We Have the Courage to Stop This?” Has a strong opinion on why gun laws and regulations should be enforced greatly. One of Kristof's main claims is that he believes that if it is harder for civilians to obtain a gun that it would also reduce the amount of people being killed. Kristof uses evidence which not only agrees with his claim but that is also very credible. For example he uses statistics when he writes, “In Australia in 1996, a mass killing of 35 people galvanized the nation’s conservative prime minister to ban certain rapid-fire long guns…The law did not end gun ownership in Australia. It reduced the number of firearms in private hands by one-fifth, The murder rate with firearms has dropped by more than 40 percent…” Australia having banned rapid-fire long guns saved the lives of many people living in their country and made it a safer place to live. Kristof's text is not only strong because he uses ethos as a strategy and uses plenty of credible evidence but also because he looks at both sides of the argument. He anticipates what others will say about this issue and rebuttals their argument. 

About myself

I am currently a computer engineering major, once I graduate I hope to get a job with my degree in a field directly related to my degree. I enjoy working on computers and learning everything about them.  Other than writing papers as assignments I am also on Twitter. Usually I just write about things I have seen throughout the day but I do not use as much as I used to. Over the years I feel like I have become a better writer due to the constructive criticism that teachers and peers have given me but I know that I can definitely improve.