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French women demonstrate against discrimination | Islamophobia Watch

By Bob Pitt

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Around 50 women gathered Saturday afternoon outside the city hall at Rennes to denounce the Islamophobic discrimination faced by veiled women. The collective, made up of Muslims and non-Muslims, women veiled and non-veiled, sought by this action to call on public opinion to combat prejudice.

On their placards were slogans such as “How can we claim to defend women by excluding some women?” or “No to a ban on the veil. No to the imposition of the veil. Freedom of choice for all women”. They also denounced the draft law to ban the wearing of the veil by child minders, or the circular which prohibits veiled women from accompanying their children on school trips.

These demands echo the campaign by CCIF for the repeal of the Luc Chatel circular, which has been found to be discriminatory: follow this link to send a letter to Vincent Peillon, the new minister of national education.

CCIF, 1 October 2012

Taking away a woman’s right to cover up and practice her religion, something that is a fundamental human right, is not giving her more freedom. You’re not convincing us of that, and you can’t tell me you legitimately believe that.

SO AWESOME SO AWESOME SO AWESOME

I just want to point out, while I agree this is pretty much bullshit, that it’s actually illegal for any person to wear religious items on school functions/at school/at work in France, so this isn’t necessarily islamaphobic but something else. I don’t know I’m kind of confused on the issue as I’ve studied french culture for half my life, and the way it’s been taught to me is that religious items are banned on the platform of equality; so that everyone may have the equal right to practice, but in their private lives. Can someone help me? I’m not trying to be ignorant, I just think it’s rude to assume that French people are automatically being racist when the basis of these rules is the protection of their culture and I think they have that right. I don’t know… anyone? Please call me out, I need it.

^ YES YES YES. I am glad to see a non-French person putting nuance into this whole issue. Thank you.

This whole argument of “freeing oppressed women” was not overly played in this whole debate in banning the niqab and the burqa. It was present, but it was secularism and French culture that were mainly brought up in the whole discourse.

People tend to look at France’s issues with the veil and Islam in general with a very American-centric view (and eventually oversimplify what is at stake here).

Let’s say, it’s very complicated. It’s a mix between secularism, French culture, history and Islamophobia and that’s what makes up the whole issue. Non-French people (Muslims, in particular) tend to overplay the islamophobia part of the issue and just dismiss so much of French culture and history and how secularism is very important in French society and for French people.