‘Hijab Day’ at prestigious French university renews veil controversy

France's attack on the freedom of choice of these women is appalling. Good on them for standing up and fighting oppression!

A group of university students have rekindled the heated debate over the acceptance of the Muslim veil in French society as they invited fellow classmates at the prestigious Sciences Po university to try on the garment.

“We could no longer allow people to say things supposedly on our behalf, it was time to speak for ourselves,” a student identifying herself only as Laetitia told journalists, insisting that the event aimed to encourage discussion among students, but in no way intended to convert people to Islam.

An Australian student spending one semester in Paris was one of the first to accept the challenge. Hannah Bartlett threw on a bright purple scarf with the help of one of the organisers. “Supporting other women is important. Wearing a veil is their choice,” she said, expressing surprise the issue was so controversial in France.

Last month, Laurence Rossignol, France’s minister for women’s rights, compared Muslim women who wear the hijab to “American negroes who were in favour of slavery”. More recently, Prime Minister Manuel Valls said he was in favour of a law banning head scarves in public universities.