woman in hijabRanya Nassereddin shows her hijab during Islam Awareness Week in the CAW Student Centre.

Panel to discuss proposed Quebec restrictions on religious dress

Quebec’s proposed Charter of Values, now taking centre stage in its provincial election campaign, would ban the wearing of religious symbols for government workers while on duty. Canadian women are divided: do these changes represent an affirmation of secularism and sexual equality or a punitive restriction of freedom?

A panel will discuss these issues Monday, March 24, at 7 p.m. in the Toldo Health Education Centre’s room 102.

Moderated by Sheza Khurshid, “Gender, Race, Religion and the Proposed Quebec Charter of Values: Canadian Women Speak Out!” will feature:

  • Silmy Abdullah, Bill 60: the Road to State-sanctioned Oppression of and Violence against Muslim Women;
  • Jackie Hardy, the Implications of the Quebec Charter for All Canadian Women: a Young Feminist’s Perspective; and
  • Ayesha Mian, “Randomly” Profiling Hijab: Women, Identity and Nationality.

The event is sponsored by the Friends of Women’s Studies in celebration of International Women’s Day 2014.