Hello, I’m writing at 05:30 in the morning, I hope I’m not bothering you. Let me cut it short and talk about my problem.

I’m 15 years old. Last year, I was forced by my father to get in the hijab. This process began in my childhood with my mother’s pressure on me. I could not wear tank tops, shorts, or dresses… Then, my father’s threats to make me veil began, and now I’m here. I really don’t feel like doing it, and I do it so unwillingly. My friends, whom I newly met in high school, asked me “Were you forced into wearing a hijab?” without even asking how I’m feeling that day. I went through this 5-6 times. I want to unveil but I can never tell my father. When I told my mother, she showed a big reaction. “If you tell your father, he will kill you.” and so on… I once tried to poison and kill myself. But I wasn’t successful. My father would kill me if I told him, so I wanted to kill myself to escape. I didn’t choose my religion, I had to believe in the religion my family told me to believe in. I’m living in this kind of an oppressive, authoritarian family. Those friends in the comments, please help me, how can I tell my father? By the way, in relation to this subject, a 20-25 years old girl in our circle unveiled, her father beat her. When my father heard about this incident, he said stuff like “I would crush her against the wall, remove her teeth, shed blood, kill.” This is why I’m afraid of telling.

Translator: Leto

(Image: Giulia Pintus)