Before January of this year the wearing of a face mask was typically expected almost exclusively worn among those working in dentistry or medicine, though also often seen in practice among international students and East Asian tourists. Now 6 months later with a pandemic in full force, face masks have become ‘the norm’ among communities not only up and down the country, but worldwide.

As a result of the coronavirus pandemic, we don’t have to look far now to see just how in demand face masks have become. Supermarkets and post offices have masks readily available on the counter, whilst a multitude of brands from ASOS to Gucci are now releasing their own lines of fashionable face coverings with branding and sizing to accommodate all. In this sense, the fashion world appears to have latched onto the widespread demand for face coverings in the same way that they would to capitalize on a trend. Unlike many trends, however, the end of this one is nowhere in sight.

The growing popularity of face masks in the UK is primarily spearheaded by recent government legislations. Rules put in place on 25^th July require all UK citizens to wear a mask when out shopping or risk a fine, whilst further regulation on 8^th August saw this requirement enforced across all indoor public spaces.

It comes as no surprise that, as a result of such a strong demand in the West, many individuals now feel comfortable wearing a face mask. In order to bolster compliance, Boris Johnson notably wore a face mask for the first time in public recently, as did US president Donald Trump. Although this is effectively a step forward in the right direction for the recovery of public health and the economy, the desirable quality of face coverings now calls into question certain longstanding prejudices.

Since 9/11, Muslims in the west have all too often been vilified for wearing face coverings such as niqabs, burqas and hijabs. Such abuse is frequently backed by racist and misogynistic beliefs, with many simultaneously criticising the ‘repressive’ and apparently non-native nature of these face coverings. For example, in France, the act of wearing of a full-face burqa in public has been banned since 2010, with many women being forced to remove their religious headwear when entering shops or boarding public transport. As millions of masked French people now go about their daily lives with no issue, the pandemic and its legislations have done well to expose the discriminatory nature of regulations and preconceptions such as these.

Likewise, in the UK, biases against religious headwear and face coverings have since been expressed by our own Prime Minister. In a Daily Telegraph column from 2018, Boris Johnson notoriously compared women in burkas to ‘letterboxes,’ inspiring a notable spike in Islamophobic behaviour in the months that followed. Furthermore, in a vote cast just months after the Brexit referendum in 2016, a staggering 57% of the UK public voted in favour of a ban similar to that which had been imposed in France. Now, with the vast majority of the UK population avidly purchasing and wearing face masks without hesitation, it is difficult to ignore the ironic hypocrisy of western prejudices against face coverings.

The widespread retailing of face coverings throughout Europe and America proves that the influence of the western world, and its role in this reassessment of prejudice, cannot be underestimated. With the ever-growing normalisation of face masks worldwide, paired with the now fashionable and desirable retailing of them, it seems appropriate now more than ever for longstanding preconceptions to be reconsidered.

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