Veils on Rua Halfeld: a study of Muslim women in the Juiz de Fora Mosque and the use of the veil (Véus sobre a Rua Halfeld: um estudo sobre as mulheres muçulmanas da Mesquita de Juiz de Fora e o uso do véu)

The issue discussed in this essay, which permeates its main goal is: How the Muslim women – not only the ones Muslim born or having Muslim ancestors but also the Brazilian ones converted to Islam – from the Mosque of Juiz de Fora (MG) are experiencing the Islamic praxis and eventually building an identity mainly upon the veil wearing.

In order to study the Muslim women from Juiz de Fora we intend to focus on their living conditions, duties, experiences, and status in a city of christian tradition.

The veil wearing makes all the difference and characterizes the typical Muslim identity.

This essay tries to understand what identity those women are building: would it be useful to establish a political, religious, individual and collective border?

We hold that the wearing of the ḥijāb (veil) is too complex and can be considered in Juiz de Fora not only as a symbolic component, part of the Muslim religious identity, but also as a subjective factor, which is reassuring those women by bestowing them a new personal identity.