This week, The Malta Independent published an article in which a Maltese Muslim woman said that women who wear the hijab, a simple headscarf, find it difficult to find jobs.

The comment section on our portal went wild. Comment after comment came in, many of them telling Muslim people to go home, leave the country or shut up. It is a very damning indictment of our society’s views.

The hijab does not cover the face. It is a simple scarf that many Muslim women wear to cover their hair. Nothing more, nothing less. A Muslim woman in Malta said that women are resorting to removing the attire while at work in the hope that ‘God will understand’.

Let us forget the religious aspects for just a moment. Has our society suddenly become so intolerant? The answer is a clear and unequivocal no. Our society and our perceptions of social norms have always been so conservative that they blind judgment.

Take a look around. Foreign companies have no problem whatsoever in employing people with piercings, tattoos and an alternative dress sense. Yet Maltese companies have always been much stricter in their interpretation of what is acceptable and what is not. People with body art and, perhaps, having a somewhat different style have long complained that Maltese employers are too rigid in their interpretation of what is important.

This is beginning to be felt so much that dedicated social media pages have sprung up to share information about which companies are friendly towards body art, piercings and more. And it begs the question – if a person is qualified to do their job, and they do it well, what on earth does their appearance (as long as it is not blatantly offensive) have to do with it?

And this is where the hijab comes back in. The hijab does not cover the face or give rise to security fears, as might the niqab or the burqa. The face can be seen and the identity can be established. Some Muslim women might opt for a colourful one or a black and sombre one. There is absolutely no difference between a hijab and a beanie or a hat. It is a personal choice.

Just like one person might opt for a trendy sports jacket rather than a three-piece suit, it is a personal choice. This is simply about a person’s right to choose what they want to wear. Can anyone honestly say that a hijab is offensive? It is an item of clothing – a simple one at that – which is directly related to a personal choice to wear it. It is not much different to a nun’s veil. Actually, it is a lot more colourful and personalised than that. We really do need to sort out our priorities. A simple head scarf should not preclude someone from finding a job.