Justice Femme – Eye on Islamism

Protesters gather to oppose religious symbols ban, one year after Bill 21 became law Law bans wearing of religious symbols such as a hijab or kippah by public servants in positions of authority

June 14, 2020 Unlisted Author

(CBC) Dozens of people gathered outside Quebec Premier François Legault’s Montreal office on Sunday to stage a sit-in, in opposition to the province’s ban on religious symbols that became law one year ago. The most controversial section of the law, known as […]

‘We will keep on fighting’: Muslim women devastated by Appeal Court decision to uphold Bill 21 Amal Sassi, who came to Quebec to pursue a teaching career, had hoped for a ruling allowing her to continue

December 12, 2019 Verity Stevenson

(CBC) Amal Sassi was counting on Quebec’s highest court to suspend the province’s controversial secularism law, so she kept her head buried in her books Thursday and focused on studying for her final exams. When she stepped out and heard the news that […]

Pamphlets inform Muslim women of their rights in wake of Quebec’s secularism law Documents include information on how to face and report harassment and how to deal with discrimination

November 28, 2019 Unlisted Author

(CBC) An advocacy group is launching a campaign to inform Muslim women of their rights as it tries to deal with increasing reports of harassment and discrimination since Quebec’s secularism law was introduced. Justice Femme, the group behind the campaign, will begin distributing […]

‘I feel a kind of rage inside me’: Hijabi teachers in Quebec struggle to find way forward Advocacy group Justice Femme says secularism law is so vague, school boards all apply it differently

September 25, 2019 Verity Stevenson

(CBC) Fatima Boularhmane isn’t sure where to turn anymore. She and her husband and children emigrated from Morocco about a decade ago, lured by the idea of living in a free and democratic country. Trained as an electrical engineer, Boularhmane tried in vain to get a […]

Quebec premier shrugs off charge new religious symbols law makes Muslim women more vulnerable to racism François Legault skeptical of Muslims who say Islamophobia's on the rise in Quebec

June 27, 2019 Jonathan Montpetit

(CBC) Quebec Premier François Legault says he doesn’t “really” believe Muslim women in the province who say they’ve been the target of Islamophobic incidents since the government passed a law making it illegal for some civil servants to wear religious symbols. Several Muslim […]

Protesters in Quebec City say Bill 21 will ‘create barriers for future generations’ Sit-in at Quebec's National Assembly draws small crowd under rainy skies

June 11, 2019 Julia Page

(CBC) Several dozen people stood in the pouring rain outside Quebec’s National Assembly on Tuesday to tell the Coalition Avenir Québec that they will continue to fight against the party’s proposed ban on religious symbols in the civil service, even if Bill 21 is passed at […]

Why doesn’t the Quebec government seem bothered by mounting tension over its religious symbols bill? The CAQ insists everything is fine as Quebec debates Bill 21, but evidence suggests otherwise

May 27, 2019 Jonathan Montpetit

(CBC) Over the weekend, police in Quebec City opened an investigation into a possible hate crime outside a suburban mosque, the same mosque where, in 2017, a white nationalist killed six people. The incident, which allegedly involved a man shouting racist comments […]

Muslim women report spike in harassment, discrimination since Bill 21 tabled Advocacy group says more than 40 recent cases of hijab-wearing women subjected to hate

May 13, 2019 Jonathan Montpetit

(CBC) There has been a sharp increase in harassment directed at Muslim women in Quebec since the province tabled draft legislation to ban religious symbols in parts of the civil service, according to a women’s advocacy group. Justice Femme, a Montreal organization that […]