Yesterday France bannned the wearing of all religious symbols in their schools. Did the Catholics cry out that they should be allowed the right to wear crosses? No. Did the Jews complain that they were not permitted to wear yarmulkes? No. Did the Muslims complain that they would no loger be allowed to wear headscarves? You bet they did!
But I can’t help but ask myself why. I mean, in any religion, there are rules to be followed, and sometimes certain codes of dress, and you can’t please everyone. So the government decides to eliminate the problem by removing all religious symbolism from public schools. And no one complained except the Muslims. I know, and the French government knows, that the hijab is a powerful and important part of Muslim culture. But do the Muslims realize that the separation of Church and State are powerful and important symbols of French culture? And that they are, in fact, in France???
The Jews managed to integrate. The Catholics had to give up full and complete control over the entire country, and they’ve adjusted. I only hope that the protests and outcry from the Muslim community are just teething problems, and that in time they will integrate, as well.
