Quebec’s Muslims, Jews Oppose Bid to Ban Religious Symbols in Public Jobs

MONTREAL, Canada – Quebec’s Muslims and Jews are on the same side of a heated debate over whether the regional government can ban employees in public service from wearing overt religious symbols, such as Muslim women wearing headscarves.

Last week, the Quebec government lit a political firestorm by unveiling its “Charter of Values,” under which employees in public sectors or connected with it would be banned from wearing symbols that advertise any religion.

Among other things it would mean that Muslim women observing the hijab, Sikh men wearing the turban, Jews sporting the kippah or Christians with larger-than-average crucifixes could no longer do so at government jobs.

The Islamic Cultural Centre of Quebec has denounced the bill, which immediately excludes women with hijabs from jobs in any public institution, including state schools and hospitals.

The Islamic Centre has appealed to the government to understand that hijab is not a symbol but a religious practice, and that the proposal would have the biggest impact on Quebec’s Islamic community.

“Wearing the Islamic headscarf for these women is a religious practice and not just a simple sign,’’ the center said in a statement last week.

Quebec Muslims see the proposal as a deprivation of their right to work.

“My wife and I came to Quebec with working qualifications, but once we were in Quebec we were told those qualifications are not recognized,” said Chokri, a Muslim law student. “Once we sorted that out, they told her she did not have work experience in Quebec. And now, because she wears a headscarf, they will have yet another thing against her,” he told Rudaw.

“This Charter is a deprivation of her right work,” he declared.

The Center for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA-Quebec) has likewise blasted the proposal, saying it goes too far.

‘’The Jewish community has always been strongly in favor of the religious neutrality of the state and of the equality of men and women, both of which are sociological facts firmly established in Quebec,” the Jewish center said.

“The proposed Charter of Quebec Values, and its ban on religious symbols in the entire public and para-public sector is unjustified and unjustifiable, and will unnecessarily divide Quebecers,” it said in a statement.

An online declaration for an inclusive Quebec opposing the charter had gained 12,000 signatures by many professions and many citizens from all walks of life by Sunday.

The declaration argues that the government is placing some citizens in the uncomfortable position of choosing between complying with their religious requirements or those of their employers.

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