Athlete Kubra Dagli Empowers Young Women

by Ha Lim (Deborah) Kim

On Kubra Dagli and Hijabs

Kubra Dagli is a Turkish Taekwondo Gold Medalist who wears a hijab. The public opinion about her is so divided, especially in Turkey. I wanted to discover was how Kubra Dagli's accomplishment inspires young women who also wear hijabs.

At Kilmer Library on Livingston Campus, I approached two women, Selema and Sanya (didn't want to show her face), who were wearing hijabs and interviewed them. Before interviewing them, I showed them this short video on Kubra Dagli: (https://www.facebook.com/playgroundenglish/videos/382692138730789/)

This was their reaction:

Reaction video to Kubra Dagli

Personal Thoughts

Personally, approaching strangers isn't something I would normally do, so I was nervous about first asking them if I could interview them and then asking questions that had to do with their religion, their clothing, and their beliefs. As a Christian Asian-American, I don't have many thoughts about Kubra Dagli on wearing a hijab or what hijabs mean to me. However, Kubra Dagli isn't just an inspiration to Muslim women. She's an inspiration to everyone! In my opinion, she totally rocks! I think it's so badass of her to be a gold medalist taekwondo fighter and also rocking a hijab at the same time. I think it's so bold for people to express what they believe in, especially at a time when there's such a negative connotation for Muslims in this day and age.

Listening to these women talk about their perspective was an experience that I will continue to do. I think it is so easy to overlook individuals' perspectives, thoughts, opinions, and beliefs on global events, ideas, and concepts, but to sit down and talk about these things on a personal level really opened my eyes. 

I also found that Selema wished that Kubra Dagli would get more recognition and publicity on her accomplishments. When I first approached them, both of them didn't know who this athlete was. But in the midst of showing them the video, they both said that they had seen this before. I think that Kubra Dagli really needs be recognized more even among young women. 

Another interesting thing that I found was that both of these women talk about the independence and confidence they get from wearing hijab. While many people in this world may see the hijab as a sign of oppression, both of these women have said that it is a way of expression. Just as Kubra Dagli is unafraid of wearing a hijab, all women, regardless of color, religion, or ethnicity, should be comfortable with wearing their own skin and be free from judgement.        

Short Bio

Deborah (Ha Lim) Kim is a Junior at Rutgers University. Her major is East Asia Studies with a Concentration in Chinese. She is a Korean-American and loves to learn about different cultures. 

Email: deborah.h.kim@rutgers.edu