A French Muslim girl was kicked out of class because her skirt was too long

The Washington Post
April 30, 2015 13:55 MYT
The news sparked an outcry on social media, with commentators remarking on the hypocrisy and bigotry lurking beneath Sarah's treatment.
According to French media reports, a 15-year-old French Muslim girl was banned from her class twice for wearing a skirt that was too long, and therefore supposedly a conspicuous display of religion. France's state secularism has led to very strict laws prohibiting students from wearing overtly religious symbols in institutions of education.
The student, identified as Sarah, already apparently removed her headscarf before entering the school, in accordance with French law. But her long skirt was deemed a "provocation," and potential act of protest.
"The girl was not excluded, she was asked to come back with a neutral outfit," a local official in the northeastern French town of Charleville-Mezieres, near the border with Belgium, told the AFP.
The news sparked an outcry on social media, with commentators remarking on the hypocrisy and bigotry lurking beneath Sarah's treatment. On Twitter, the hashtag #JePorteMaJuppeCommeJeVeux ("I wear my skirt as I like") trended.

France's islamophobia is off the charts. #JePorteMaJuppeCommeJeVeux

— Leen (@romansociety) April 29, 2015
An error occurred while retrieving the Tweet. It might have been deleted.

That's so messed up in so many levels , shame on you #France #JePorteMaJuppeCommeJeVeux

— (@_MohamedNasser_) April 29, 2015
An error occurred while retrieving the Tweet. It might have been deleted.

#JePorteMaJuppeCommeJeVeux What a shame for all humanity! What about freedom of belief Europa?

— Bilge (@Bilgerbas) April 29, 2015
An error occurred while retrieving the Tweet. It might have been deleted.
One Twitter user set Sarah's skirt against those worn by three other white public figures.
Another tweeted that Michelle Obama's dress is "unworthy of the Republic."
Critics of France's secularist laws in schools say they often thinly conceal a widespread bias against Muslims and immigrants in French society. Studies have revealed how Muslims face systematic discrimination on the basis of their race, creed and culture.
Speaking to local newspaper L'Ardennais, Sarah said that her skirt was "nothing special, it's very simple, there's nothing conspicuous. There is no religious sign whatsoever."
#banned #class #Muslim #religious symbols
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