Leïla Babes describes herself as “a lay Muslim”. Algerian in origin, she has dedicated her academic life to a scientific critique of texts, enlightened by a modern concept of freedom. The first part of this book presents the various roles and myths surrounding the veil; the second part offers an analysis of the relations between gender, power and transcendence in Islam. By means of numerous examples, this well argued book clearly shows the truth about the origins of the tradition of wearing the veil, and denounces the many ways in which it has been distorted. The author explains how the veil has become a political instrument of Islamic communitarism and how — far from being a tool for the emancipation of women— it is the vestimentary symbol of their oppression.