http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/europe/04/21/belgium.burqa.ban/index.html
If passed those caught can be fined or even imprisoned for 1-7 days.
Even though it has to do with religion I believe that it is still relevant to our class because of the overlap with race, considering that the majority of Muslims are non-white while Belgium's population is predominately Causcasian. On a related note, this is not the first issue with European governments targeting Muslims. In Switzerland they passed a ban on building minarets, the tall towers next to mosques, back in November.
Kyle, this is a very interesting article. It really seems to show the desire to have people assimilate to dominant culture. Muslims are a target population around the world. While some may think the decision to ban the burqa is necessary for women's rights reason, it should not be a forced law that women can not wear them. While some wear them bc of obligation and repression, others believe it is a very necessary part of their religion and identity.
ReplyDeleteWhat does it mean to have an outsider (I'd assume predominantly white christian government--75% of the population is catholic) make decisions about what should and should not be part of the muslim identity?
Should such authority be allowed?