Posted on 12/21/2004 9:31:32 AM PST by The Loan Arranger
An employee at a municipal swimming pool in the Parisian suburb of Seine-Saint-Denis was fired in late March 2004 after the local mayor objected to the man's facial hair. "The external expression of religious beliefs cannot be tolerated where students are taking swimming courses," the mayor said. He continued with a rhetorical question that reflects contemporary concerns about Islam's place in French society: "Is proselytism a real problem in our country or not? Wasn't a law just passed that reminded us all of our duty to respect neutrality in civic life?" The city pool employee, Mourad Lamsanes, insisted he was just trying to be a good Muslim and did not intend to convert any swimmers. Shortly after introducing the bill last winter, former education minister Luc Ferry had in fact stated that perhaps "certain beards" should also be included under the law's prohibitions. They were not, ultimately, but authorities made it clear that they don't like what they see underneath certain head and face coverings: an organized movement of religious prescription and proselytism. French shorthand for Islamic extremists is "les barbus" (the bearded), a companion term to "les femmes voilées" (veiled women). Officials reason that radical Islamic movements are "testing" the Republic, and that the state should not shrink from its responsibility to preserve a religiously neutral public sphere.
(Excerpt) Read more at brookings.edu ...
beards and scarves--the French have it all figured out.
civil war within 10 years...
YEah, I agree...
You can't hide who you are. The Atheist have their own influence on life and other around them and those taking swimming lessons.
Point of fact:
MY UNCLES REFUSE TO HELP THE FROGS AGAIN. (Both WW2 ETO vets.)
I refuse to help the Froganistanis. Let em rot.
France s-cks.
Advice to the French: Lie back and enjoy it!
This is what a socialist nation will bring. Soon coming to America.
Banning headscarves was incredibly stupid, but if they ban beards they will face a bloody rebellion, and they'll deserve it.
"Banning headscarves was incredibly stupid, but if they ban beards they will face a bloody rebellion, and they'll deserve it."
I disagree. I see the French as taking pro-active steps to making France an undesirable place for Muslims. If they ban headscarves and beards then the devout nutbags who want to kiil infidels will not come to France. The couching of this anti-Islamic approach in liberal secularism makes this palatable to the PC Frenchies in black berets.
We should do the same in America.
When I first heard of the head scarf ban I thought it was stupid...here in NYC our students can wear headscarves or not...no problem...but then I read that in certain cities in France the Muslims lived in ghettos and that the young men in these ghettos were beating up any Muslim girls not wearing headscarves...in effect they were being treated like whores for daring to walk with an uncovered head...it seems that many of the more enlightened Muslims want their daughters to live in some freedom from these roving gangs...banning the headscarves has alleviated the pressure on these girls since now no one is allowed to wear them in school...they in effect gave up the freedom of religious expression for the freedom from religious oppression insofar as state property goes...
Brooklyn is such a mixed cultural bag that no one really cares...we celebrate everything...I wear a crucifix to school...we have a Christams tree in our school lobby alongside a menorrah and some Kwanza candles...no big deal.
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