15-year-old Saudi girl proposes hijab-wearing emoji
A Saudi teenager living in Germany has proposed designing a headscarf emoji.
Rayouf Alhumedhi, 15, has sent a proposal to The Unicode Consortium, a non-profit corporation that reviews and develops new emojis.
The idea gained the backing of the co-founder of online discussion forum Reddit, Alexis Ohanian. If approved, her emoji will be available in 2017.
The proposal comes as countries across Europe wrestle with the issue of the Muslim veil – in all its forms.
The debate takes in religious freedom, female equality, secular traditions and even fears of terrorism.
The veil issue is part of a wider debate about multiculturalism in Europe, as many politicians argue that there needs to be a greater effort to assimilate ethnic and religious minorities.
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