The debate over Bill 21, Quebec’s law against civil servants wearing religious attire, is back in the news despite the fact that the Quebec Superior Court declared in April of this year that, under Canada’s constitution, Quebec had the right to restrict religious symbols worn by government employees. The current focus on the issue erupted this month when schoolteacher Fatemeh Anvari was told that wearing her hijab in the classroom ran afoul of Bill 21 and as such she could no longer teach her third-grade students. Bill 21 has wide support in Quebec (polls show two thirds of people support it) and Anvari must have known that she was breaking the law when she decided to wear the hijab before her grade three students. The AQNAL supported Bill 21 stating and rejected criticisms of the legislation by the National Council of Canadian Muslims. The words of Quebec Muslim activist Ferid Chikhi are worth paying attention to.

Source: Ethiopian News December 20, 2021 12:46 UTC