Preserving our secular society.
The week's news at a glance.
France
Luc Bronner and Xavier Ternisien
Le Monde
Don’t be too shocked, but school started peacefully this year, said Luc Bronner and Xavier Ternisien in Le Monde. Alarmists had feared another round of demonstrations and protests against the law banning religious symbols in public schools. The “head-scarf law,” so called because it was aimed primarily at banning the head scarves worn by Muslim girls, sparked massive outcries last year when it was first enacted. But just one year on, the immigrant community has accepted it quietly. In all of France, just 12 students showed up for the fall term wearing unacceptable religious symbols—including scarves, crosses, yarmulkes, or turbans—compared with 639 last year. The Education Ministry estimates that a few hundred students have opted to take their public-school courses by correspondence, while perhaps the same amount has switched to private schools. Catholic schools, in particular, reported an upswing in the number of turbaned Sikh boys enrolling. Many Muslims, though, have simply shed their scarves during school hours. Far from finding the law oppressive or discriminatory, most Muslim girls “see it as liberating.”
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.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
-
5 conspiratorial cartoons about FEMA
Cartoons Artists take on paper towel politics, king-sized conspiracies, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Take an island-hopping trip around Brittany
The Week Recommends From neolithic monuments to colourful harbours, there is much to discover
By The Week UK Published
-
Why has Joker: Folie à Deux divided critics?
Talking Point The sequel to Joker is 'staggeringly inept' in its attempts to explore mental health issues – but Lady Gaga is 'magnetic'
By The Week UK Published