Close to 300 young girls attending French schools opted to wear abayas to their classes on Monday, defying the ban on these long dresses for the new school year, as confirmed by France's Education Minister, Gabriel Attal, informs Euronews.
"It's just a fashion choice from the Middle East. The abaya is clothing, and when you wear it, you feel like a princess or a woman from the Middle East. It's not a religious outfit," says one of the students at French school.
"As for the Lyon Education Department, we started informing families about the secular nature of the school and what secularism means, especially concerning symbols," said Jérôme Burn Branchu, the director of education in Lyon (DASEN).
Religious clothing and symbols have been banned in French schools since 2004. However, the abaya and the also banned kamis male costume are considered more as "fashion" than religious attire, according to the French Council of the Muslim Faith (CFCM). Critics of the new law argue that the ban on wearing them in schools is unreasonable and shows bias against Islam.
French President Emmanuel Macron supports the ban on abayas and kamis. "We live in a society where a minority, misrepresenting religion, challenges the Republic and secularism. School is free, secular, and mandatory. It is not a place for religious symbols."
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