Srinagar, June 10 -- What does it mean to be free?

In every speech, slogan, and classroom, we're told freedom means choice. It means living life on your own terms. But when a woman in Kashmir, or anywhere, chooses to wear the hijab, that freedom suddenly becomes a problem.

We see it time and again. In France, the hijab is banned in schools. In parts of India, students are barred from exams or classes for covering their heads. On television panels and social media, the debate rages about "oppression," "modernity," and "liberation." But rarely do we stop to ask: what if the woman wearing the hijab has already made her choice?

In Kashmir, women move through a space filled with both visible and invisible boundaries. We learn early that the...