Article in the G&M about a young Muslim woman ordered to leave government-funded French classes because of her refusal to take off her veil.
I'm still not entirely sure where I stand on the whole veil debate, but there is one thing I will say: for everyone complaining that the veil oppresses and disempowers women, etc., please consider that perhaps taking a French course is an empowering experience for her. That's certainly the impression I got from the article.
I do not personally like the veils and I admit that I find them jarring and seeing women in the niqab makes me uncomfortable. However, I think that by removing access to government services Quebec is removing access to the very kind of empowerment and independence that everyone seems to claim that veiled women need.
EDIT: by "everyone" I don't mean this blog.
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Phew. I thought WE had to stop comparing women to dogs.
ReplyDeleteHa-cha-cha!
Anyway, as I said in my first post, I'm not a "fan" of niqabs either. They do make me slightly uncomfortable as well, because I didn't grow up in an environment where they were common. That said, I find it slightly jarring when I see a bald woman as well, and I am slightly uncomfortable when a man with a neck tattoo sits next to me on the bus, but I am not about to ban cancer patients or... whatever you call people who have neck tattoos from public institutions. Slight discomfort is not enough to invoke infringement on another's freedom, so the niqabs stay.
Oh wait, the comparing women to dogs was on the other post. There's egg on MY face!
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