Burqa wearing banned in Canada for those taking citizenship oath

Monday, December 19, 2011

Burqa wearing banned in Canada for those taking citizenship oath | The Guardian

socialismartnature:

This is straight-up Islamophobia. Especially since the ‘citizenship oath’ ceremony is purely formalistic — the prospective citizen has already jumped through all the substantive hurdles.

It is simply a form of forced assimilation at this point … so that even when it really doesn’t matter, the white Christian nation will force all others to conform to its particular vision of what ‘normal’ is, just because it can.

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Muslim women will no longer be able to cover their faces as they take Canadian citizenship after the country’s immigration minister announced a ban on anyone wearing the niqab – the face veil – or burqa – full body and face covering – while taking the oath of citizenship.

He said that he had received complaints from citizenship judges who had claimed that it was difficult to ensure that individuals whose faces were covered were actually reciting the oath.

“They told me last month that it’s a fairly common problem. Every week, in every region of the country, we’re dealing with situations where applicants arrive with a veil on,” said Jason Kenney, the minister of citizenship and immigration.

“Frankly, I found it bizarre that the rules allowed people to take the oath with a veil on.”

He added that the move was also not simply a practical measure, saying: “It is a matter of deep principle that goes to the heart of our identity and our values of openness and equality.”

I HATE THIS. Especially that Orwellian bit at the end about “openness and equality”—- chilling.