Secularism and Diversity: The Islamic Veil in France

Abstract

This study aims to analyze the tension between secularism and religious freedom in French society, based on the concept of recognition; the selected examples focus on the debate surrounding the use of the Islamic veil in schools, which began in the 1980s and remains ongoing; as argued in this paper, the legalistic and homogenizing approach adopted in the name of secularism lies at the root of the discontent among the French Muslim population, particularly Muslim women, due to the lack of recognition by the State and society at large.