IMHO that is crazy. Why are they restricting what someone can wear? Thats ridiculous…

They are falling in line with Switzerland after banning minarets. Europe is not always that progressive, eh?

The article says Islam does not require the full face/head/body covering.
But is this a religious or cultural difference?
In 2004 they banned ostentatious religious garb in the public school classroom.
I assume there will be no ban of nuns wearing their habits in public.
I guess not everyone wants to be multi-culti, especially Sarkozy and his ilk.

Full disclosure:
I have to admit, I have no problem with headscarves, but I really can’t stand that burqa stuff.

I wonder if the issue is that someone will be a suicide bomber?

The latest:
Burqa Rage
Despite how I personally feel about women wearing the veil, to me this is a true hate crime.

The KKK has similar face covering. I think the issue is that you can’t have your face covered, and must be easily identifiable in public places.

I lived for 3 years in the highest concentration of Muslims and immigrants in Denmark. It was nice to have fresh fruit and veg year-round, and my pick of pork at the supermarkets.

There’s nothing in the Koran that says a woman must cover her face. Wearing the full veil is not a religious requirement but rather a cultural custom, like female circumcision.

Cannibalism is cultural custom for some people.

Remind me not to have dinner at your house Don…I think the point is that just because something or some practice has a long standing tradition doesn’t necessarily mean it cannot be modified to meet the standards of modern society. In today’s world I think it reasonable that people should be identifiable when in public.

Any time. It’ll be mostly fresh veg and pork. Try not to use the word “taliban” — the neighbors get nervous.

My opinion:
France, as the rest of Europe, is more susceptible to having middle eastern cultures move there. (It’s more accessible.) I would assume this is their version of the illegal immigrant issue that we have in the states. Combine that with the fact that the terrorist issue branches from the same demographics. It make sense to be able to recognize a person. (Remember the post of someone’s drivers license where they had their face totally covered.) What kind of sense it make to take a picture of a covered face that is to be used for an ID?

That being “said”, the lawyer had no right to assault the person and uncover her face. That would be a matter for the law, if the burka were illegal. I read an article about a lady killing her husband for removing her head covering shows how important the head covering is to some. (After years of marriage, he wanted to see what she looked like.)

So far as the proposed law, I agree. The safety of the many outweigh someone covering their face. If you want to leave the middle east or any other country, you have to conform to where you move to. This shouldn’t be a big deal as I assume you’re leaving to go somewhere better.

I would hope, in America, that a policeman would pull someone over if they were driving with a head covering as this would endanger lives as compared with someone’s cultural belief.

Some religions (wiccan) perform their cermonies in the nude. Don’t know what’s worse: a totally covered woman or a nude old guy practicing witchcraft

Mb, from what i understand, the issue in France is mostly their staunch support of secularism in society. Not too long ago, kids were no longer allowed to wear items of religious significance to public schools in France. Now the Burqa is under question. Most French believe that the Burqa degrades women in society, and that they are subject to wear them by their husbands/peers. Therefore this challenges their freedom as individuals (kind of b/c not allowing them to wear the burqa would also challenge their individual freedom of course). It’s a delicate balance, but I know that most ‘frenchmen’ hate seeing the burqa in the streets.

And France is more prone to immigration from the Maghreb because of its colonial past there and therefore the image of France in these decolonized countries of being the ultimate paradise (rich mans land), and the fact that they can speak French so moving to France is easier than lets say Germany (the Turks move to Germany).

I’m all for secularism, but it seems to me that the French apply this secularism selectively.
Example: Catholic (Protestant) holidays such as Ascension Day are still observed—as a public holiday.
The full veil is indeed bizarre to me; sometimes this multi-culti world might move a bit too fast for some. But to tear it off like that, ugh.

Agreed Cil!
The question remains however whether the burqa is really ‘culture’ or a repression of a womens rights.

Thanks tigrouflip – Didn’t know all the aspects.

So far as degrading goes, not if the woman wants to wear a burqa. Like the one who killed her husband for because he wanted to see what his wife looked like after many years of marriage.

Anyway, If you’re want to live in France or anywhere else, you have to obey the laws of the land and society.

This burqa issue could also be a means to another end.