Ilhan Omar & Linda Sarsour describe the Hijab as "freeing"

That is a very clever comment. Made me laff, James. Thanks!

To different people, of course. It's not a set interpretation... rather like Religion.
yet somehow, people die over stupid, minor things regarding religion.

Very Intelligent comment. Thank you! To me, a child of the 60s, the hijab is a sign of repression. I don't think a woman woke up aone day and said, "Crap, it such a hot day today! Let me put on a hijab to protect me from the stones men are throwing at me. Ve

Thank you, Wayne

Frees them from a death sentence, yay!

That's about the truth of it!

Sad, but that's the gist of it.

The harsh reality those enslaved to political correctness will never be able to grasp much less understand.

You are a man who sees the truth and understands the ramifications of their political correctness. -v

So when is Islam going to catch up?

I don't know, but it's better than religious suppression.

But that's the point, isn't it? Being ossified, unable to catch up with the rest of the world for whom such flexibility is not so alien?

Although it can be argued that in some corners, as exhibted by our Alt Right Red State brethren, the are not entirely alone in their backward leanings...

Well, many people are. It's just Islam gets the short end of the stick for being somewhat foreign

In a way, yes, but look around the world, wherever they are, they aren't doing much to repair that image, to put it nicely.

My experience, which has been a lot more personal than average, is that being foreign is what they seek. They expect others to conform to them, instead of adapting to the lands they migrate to.
The only ones I've encountered not like this and who actually like it here have been from Gambia, Senegal, Ivory Coast, and other African countries. Except Somalis, they might as well be from the Arabian Penninsula. And likewise, their actions reflect their attitudes. It's rather chilling.