Barely two and a half years ago, we cats opined on the then-new French law banning the Muslim niqab. Our take: Personally, we're not big on religious attire, but once you start calling one silly outfit out of bounds, where do you stop?
Now, we're sorry to say, the Parti Quebecois is going down the same road, seeking to forbid not only the hijab among public-sector workers in Quebec but the wearing of all "conspicuous" religious symbols. This, from a provincial government whose National Assembly (above) features a big honkin' crucifix on the wall.
Hilarious — except, not. Like the teabaggers in the US screaming about sharia law, the PQ has decided to attack a problem that does not exist. And already some prominent Quebec-based employers — such as the Jewish General Hospital in Montreal — have publicly declared that they will ignore the ban. (What will Premier Pauline Maurois do? Send in the gendarmes?)
As part-time Quebeckers, we cats find this whole thing very sad. While the PQ and its separatist allies cling to the past, Quebec and Canada are striding confidently into the future. Meaning that they're welcoming new Canadians from all around the world. A truly diverse and exciting society is being built in Montreal, but the ostriches in the rest of the province have yet to catch up.
We would only remind PQers of the words of Roch Carrier, author of The Hockey Sweater, a Canadian classic: "I was in a park recently and saw a Muslim couple," he said. "Her face was hidden by a scarf, and they were walking side by side, and in front of them was a child, I'd say, seven years old, wearing a Canadiens sweater."
And that, mesdames et messieurs, is Quebec's true religion. We cats PURR.
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