London
British school principals may ban religious dress, including the Muslim veil, from the classroom at their discretion, the Education Ministry said this week. While schools should still “make every effort to accommodate social, religious, or medical requirements of individual pupils,” said Schools Minister Jim Knight, “the needs of safety, security, and effective learning in the school must always take precedence.” The ministry announced new school uniform guidelines to clarify the rules after a 12-year-old girl lost a legal battle to wear a full-face veil last month. British Muslims were divided on the new setup. Tahir Alam of the Muslim Council of Britain said letting principals decide uniform policy was appropriate. But Massoud Shadjareh of the Islamic Human Rights Commission said he was “shocked” and “dismayed.”
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Democrats: How to rebuild a damaged brandFeature Trump's approval rating is sinking, but so is the Democratic brand
-
Unraveling autismFeature RFK Jr. has vowed to find the root cause of the 'autism epidemic' in months. Scientists have doubts.
-
'Two dolls': Can Trump sell Americans on austerity?Feature Trump's tariffs may be threatening holiday shelves but they've handed Democrats a 'huge gift'
