ABSTRACT
This chapter examines burqa representations against the backdrop of the 'war on terror' in US news media, and then analyses the notion of 'choice'. It discusses post-9/11 representations of the veil in the US. The chapter discusses how some Muslim women themselves understand veiling. It also discusses the discrimination Muslim women often face in United States while conducting their daily business, because of their clothing. The chapter also discusses former First Lady Laura Bush's radio address, and then draw upon articles that appeared in Time magazine and Washington Post, widely read news media in the US. In her radio address of 17 November 2001, former First Lady Laura Bush contended that as a result of the United States invasion, much of Taliban regime had retreated, 'and the people of Afghanistan – especially women – are rejoicing'. In US, the practice of veiling is not seen as a sign of cultural and religious aspiration but a practice belonging to the other.
