BREAKING: UN Slams France — “Hijab Ban is State-Sanctioned Discrimination”

“If you're free to dress as you please — unless you're Muslim — are you really free at all?” That’s the question shaking France's national identity to its core.

Once hailed as the birthplace of liberty, France is now being accused of using that very liberty to silence a group of girls who just want to go to school — and wear their hijab while doing so.

In a move that has reignited global outrage, France's longstanding ban on conspicuous religious symbols — especially the hijab — in public schools has come under renewed fire. And this time, it’s not just human rights groups speaking up. The United Nations has entered the ring, calling the policy a “grave violation of religious freedom” that “disproportionately targets Muslim girls.”

France’s Stand: Secularism Above All

To the French government, this isn’t about targeting Muslims — it's about upholding laïcité, their strict form of secularism. Officials argue that religion has no place in public institutions, especially not in schools, where children should be united by citizenship, not divided by belief.

Supporters insist that the hijab ban is neutral: it prohibits all visible religious symbols, including Christian crosses, Sikh turbans, and Jewish kippahs. It’s not about Islam, they say. It’s about keeping faith private — the French way.

For them, the hijab isn't merely a piece of cloth — it’s a religious expression that disrupts the neutrality of public education. The state, they argue, must protect young people from religious pressures and maintain a secular space where everyone is equal.

The Global Backlash: Freedom or Forced Conformity?

Human rights organizations, global media, and Muslim communities around the world have condemned the policy — not just as tone-deaf, but as discriminatory. The hijab, for many girls, is not forced upon them. It’s a choice. And by banning it, France is asking them to choose between education and religion.

Critics say this isn’t about neutrality — it’s about erasure. A Muslim girl wearing a hijab is seen as a threat to the French identity, but a secular girl with dyed blue hair and a mini skirt is considered a celebration of freedom.

“Banning the hijab in the name of freedom is like burning books to promote literacy.”

There’s also a deeper concern: that such bans feed a growing wave of anti-Muslim sentiment in France. Mosques have been vandalized. Far-right rhetoric is no longer fringe. In that climate, banning religious expression feels less like equality — and more like control.

Where I Stand

Let’s be honest: secularism isn’t the problem. Weaponized secularism is.

France has every right to promote equality and protect its schools from extremism or coercion. But when girls who proudly and willingly wear the hijab are told they can’t study unless they take it off — something has gone very wrong.

What kind of freedom tells a young girl she must strip away her identity to earn an education?

In trying to erase religious influence from public life, France may be erasing the very people it claims to protect. This isn’t unity. It’s forced uniformity.

Let’s Talk — Not Shout

So here’s the question:
Is France courageously defending secularism — or cowardly suppressing religious freedom?

Can you have true equality when faith must be hidden?
Let’s discuss below. Respectfully. Passionately. Honestly.