The Headscarf Controversy
All topics-
Danish Muslims defy face veil ban
Under the new Danish law banning facial veils, police are able to instruct women to unveil or order them to leave public areas. Fines range from 1,000 Danish crowns ($160) for a first offence to 10,000 crowns for a fourth violation. By Andrew Kelly
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Headscarves and neutrality
"It′s our decision!"
Teacher Fereshta Ludin was the first to complain about the headscarf ban in German schools. Here, she writes about her anger and disappointment over what has happened since – and what hasn’t
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Interview with Father Tobias Zimmermann
"Islam confronts us Christians with long-overdue debates"
Father Tobias Zimmermann is the principal of a Catholic school in Berlin. He recently appointed a female teacher who wears a headscarf. Because schools should also serve an experimental purpose, he says. Interview by Julia Ley
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Interview with Pakistani American actress Aizzah Fatima
"Human, flawed and funny"
Actor and writer Aizzah Fatima made waves in 2014 with her provocative play "Dirty Paki Lingerie" which explored what it meant to be a Muslim in the post 9/11 world. Fatima spoke to Roma Rajpal Weiss on her upcoming work – "The Art of Hijab, Kohl Black and The Right Way To Pray", a play that engages with the stigmatisation of hijab-wearing Muslim women in the Western world
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Bill 62 – Quebec′s burka ban
Veiled bigotry
On 18 October the Canadian province of Quebec passed new legislation forbidding a person to be veiled when delivering or receiving a public service. Bill 62, dubbed the "state religious neutrality law″, has been widely condemned by civil rights lawyers, Muslim associations and public service unions. By Richard Marcus
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Muslims in Austria
October elections: Beware of Islamophobes
Austria′s election campaign has to date been characterised by cheap propaganda and Islamophobia. Now, just four weeks before people go to the polls, Sebastian Kurz, leader of the conservative OVP, has conceded that coalition with the right-wing FPO is an option. By Farid Hafez
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Women's rights in Iran
Farewell compulsory veiling? Time to go with the flow
After the Iranian Revolution in 1979, the Islamic regime began to force women to adopt Islamic dress. Resistance to the rule has never ceased, though it has changed. And suddenly compulsory veiling in the theocracy no longer seems to be on solid ground. An abridged version of the original article by Nasrin Bassiri
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Germany
Headscarf debate: How Islamophobic is feminism?
Feminists who want to ban headscarves for girls are betraying the cause – and playing into the hands of the right-wing populists. An essay by Meredith Haaf
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Austria′s president and the Islamophobia debate
The courage of one man
By criticising the fear of Islam that is rife in Austria, the country's new president, Alexander Van der Bellen, is sending out an important signal of opposition to both the racism that has become socially acceptable once again in Europe and the stigmatisation of Muslims. By Farid Hafez
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Berlin′s Jewish Museum: ″Cherchez la femme″
Why do women hide their hair?
Muslims, Jews, Christians: women all over the world cover their heads out of religious piety. An exhibition at Berlin's Jewish Museum asks what motivates them – and how others respond. By Nadine Wojcik
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Discrimination in schools
Better marks without a headscarf
All children are supposed to have equal educational opportunities – that sounds good in theory. In reality, however, many pupils of migrant origin experience discrimination. A number of initiatives in Berlin are committed to changing this. By Nicole Sagener
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Freedom of religion at work
Islam – a disruptive influence?
A ruling by the European Court of Justice allows employers to prohibit their staff from wearing headscarves. In doing so, it affords greater freedom to companies than it does to religion. A commentary by Heribert Prantl