Literature on French Headscarf Law

This review of literature focuses on a controversial issue that has emerged in recent years in Europe regarding the practice among Muslim women of wearing the hijab or veil. In France, the government has taken the somewhat unprecedented step of banning such clothing in public schools, arguing that by refusing to allow Muslim females to wear this distinctive item of clothing, any possibility of discrimination against these female students because of their faith will be eliminated. The French government's action has evoked a storm of protest in France and in other countries, where laws provide for allowing members of faith groups to wear specific items that reflect elements of their belief and value system (e.g., the Jewish yarmulke, the Christian cross, and so on).

The review of Literature examines in particular the nature of the controversy and the response of the United Kingdom to the French law. It reveals that while some public schools in Great Britain have been permitted under the law to ban wearing of specific items of clothing, the general consensus among British policymakers and others is that government should not become involved in such matters and that individual human and civil rights should be respected with regard to wearing of items of clothing or accessories that identify one as a member of a faith group or religion.

Literature Review: Religious Symbols and U.K. Response

The hijab or veil is an article of clothing worn by many

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The BBC (Q&A: Muslim Headscarves," 2) also reported that Christian, Jewish, and Muslim groups throughout Europe and the United Kingdom have gone on record against the headscarf ban in France. Many in Great Britain find the law unacceptable. In Britain, Muslim girls are free to wear the headscarf just as Jewish boys are free to wear their traditional skull caps and Christians wear crosses. London Mayor Ken Livingstone identified the French law as the most reactionary proposal enacted by any European parliament since World War II (Al-Yafai, 1). Mayor Livingstone stated that he was determined that no such law would be passed in London because "it marks a move towards religious intolerance which we in Europe swore never to repeat, having witnessed the devastating effects of the Holocaust" (Al-Yafai, 1). Mayor Livingstone was supported in this position by a number of prominent Muslims in the United Kingdom and an organization known as the Assembly for the Protection of Hijab which holds that the right to wear the headscarf is a fundamental aspect of religious freedom. Other reactions from prominent groups within the United Kingdom were described by John-Henry Westen (1), who said that the United Kingdom Evangelical Allia

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