German Constitutional Court backs hijab bans in the judiciary

Over the past twenty years, the Federal Republic of Germany has witnessed a slew of court cases surrounding Muslim women’s right to wear the hijab in different situations. Much litigation has revolved around two sites: schools and teaching personnel on the one hand, and courts and judicial employees on the other hand. Gradually, after years…

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Free choice and its discontents: Germany debates Muslim women’s attire

What is the meaning of the religious attire worn by some Muslim women? Are hijab and niqab hallmarks of the retrograde nature of Islam? Do they signal radicalisation and submission to male patriarchy – or self-determination and individual empowerment? These questions have been ceaselessly debated across Europe for years. In Germany, a new round of…

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French law against religious symbols in parliament sparks criticism

France’s parliament has banned lawmakers from wearing any religious symbols under a new “neutral” dress code. Members of the National Assembly must avoid “the wearing of conspicuous religious symbols, uniforms, logos or commercial messages or political slogans.” Any expression made in the chamber must be spoken, said François de Rugy, the president of the National Assembly. In the…

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The Police and the Headscarf Debate in the Netherlands and the Case of Sarah Izat

Can you be a “neutral” policewoman and still wear an Islamic headscarf? According to young Dutch Muslim Sarah Izat (26), these two are not in contradiction with each other. Izat, who has worked for the Dutch police force since she was twenty-one years old, has become prominent in Dutch public debates about wearing a headscarf…

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The hijab in German public schools: New court case lets old questions resurface

The protracted German debate on Muslim teachers’ right to wear the hijab when working in the public sector has received its newest episode. The State Labour Court (Landesarbeitsgericht) of Berlin and Brandenburg decided in favour of a Muslim teacher who had sued the state of Berlin for barring her from exercising her profession because of…

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