Muslims, men or women, are enjoined to cover certain portion of their bodies as in the case of many religious traditions, including Judaism and Christianity. The Qur'an says, "Say to the believing men that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty: that will make for greater purity for them: And God is well acquainted with all that they do. And say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that they should not display their beauty and ornaments except what (must ordinarily) appear thereof; that they should draw their veils over their bosoms and not display their beauty except " (24:30-31) and the verses continue to give a list of male family members who are the exceptions to the rule.

In Islam's perspective, God is the Creator of the whole universe including human beings. Hence, God is the true owner of all creation. God has entrusted us our bodies and the environment that we live in, hence we are enjoined to protect them from possible physical and spiritual harm. It is only natural for believers to follow God, who has created humanity knowing its needs and weaknesses and as a result set certain guidelines and principles to ensure happiness for all.

In this and other similar requirements of Islam lies a profound and rather honest understanding of human nature. Islam appears to say that since not everyone has reached perfect levels of potential humanity, the ageold man-woman relationship is pervasively and unfortunately defined by the sexual desire. Nudity, both in women and men, is a contributor to the observed moral decline of society. As a consequence of this moral decline, crimes of sexual nature have soared in modern times. Islam's dress code aims to curb such moral decline and as a result prevent sexual crimes where the victims are usually the women. Therefore, Islam's guidelines to cover portions of the body are ultimately set to protect women.

Islam wants women to be treated with equal status to men by bringing to the fore their whole identity rather than merely emphasising their sexuality. An emphasis on sexuality in popular culture unavoidably causes women to be treated like sex objects. Placing sexuality in the background on the other hand brings out the true identity of a woman. Islam also enjoins women to cover their bodies including the hair so that they are not sexually harassed by the stare of strange men. A recent consideration in Equal Opportunity Laws is that staring at a woman can also be considered as sexual harassment. Although it is progress to recognise 'staring' as harassment, women can help men by dressing modestly. In the end, it is in the interest of women to cover themselves for protection from all possible harms including protection from the stare of strange men.