7 out of 10 want a ban on the veil

The French people’s patience for the presence of Islam in the country seems to be waning. An overwhelming majority believe that the Muslim veil should be banned in public places. However, the government is not receptive to this, as a ban would risk ‘hurting’ Muslims.

The secular values of the French Republic seem to be on a collision course with the growing Muslim population, mainly from France’s former colonies in North Africa. Like in other European countries, Islam clashes with Western values and norms.

At the same time, surveys show that second and third-generation migrants become more radical in their religious beliefs as groups like the Muslim Brotherhood exploit the emerging parallel societies promoted in ethnic minority enclaves.

In 2011, full-body Muslim clothing such as burqa and niqab was banned in public places in France, something that some now argue should be extended to also include the hijab, and it seems that the people are in favor of this. In a new survey highlighted by Breitbart, 69 percent stated that they would support a ban on the Muslim veil in public places – a significant increase of eight percentage points compared to 2022 when 61 percent answered yes.

Unsurprisingly, support for a ban is greater among those who sympathize with parties like the national-conservative National Rally. Among these, the support for a ban is about 80 percent. Despite the support being significantly less among left-wing voters, there is still a majority in favor, with 51 percent.

Veiled children in the National Assembly

The figures come in the wake of a controversy surrounding the presence of veiled schoolchildren in the gallery when the National Assembly debated the budget last month. National Assembly President Yaël Braun-Pivet warned that it posed a threat to ‘republican cohesion’ and contradicted the spirit of the 2004 law prescribing secular norms in schools.

Yaël Braun-Pivet. Photo: Houses of the Oireachtas from Ireland, CC BY 2.0

“It seems unacceptable to me that young children should be able to wear ostentatious religious symbols in the galleries. We have not been confronted with this situation before. I have urged everyone to exercise the utmost vigilance so that this does not happen again,” she wrote on social media. The chairman’s comment sparked upset feelings on the left with accusations of ‘Islamophobia’.

Could be hurt

In a new report from the center-right party The Republicans in the Senate, they demand a ban on headscarves for girls under 16 as part of a ‘comprehensive Republican rearmament against the Islamist offensive’. The senators argue that the Islamic veil represents ‘the banner of sexual apartheid’ and is used as ‘an instrument of social control and territorial marking’ to enable ‘entire territories to experience ghettoization with the creation of parallel societies that escape republican norms’.

Despite extensive public support, President Emmanuel Macron’s neoliberal government seems to be against any attempts to ban the veil publicly. The recently appointed Minister of the Interior, Laurent Nuñez, says that a veil ban would be ‘stigmatizing towards our Muslim compatriots who may feel hurt’.