![A rally was organized by staff from the Maurice-Utrillo High School in Stains to protest against the government's abaya dress ban in schools in Seine-Saint-Denis, in the suburbs of Paris, France on September 06, 2023 [Ameer Alhalbi/Anadolu Agency]](https://i0.wp.com/www.middleeastmonitor.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/AA-20230906-32088967-32088965-SCHOOL_STAFF_IN_PARIS_GO_ON_STRIKE_AFTER_ABAYA_DRESS_BAN-scaled-e1694025546395.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1)
A demonstration was held Wednesday in France against the government’s abaya ban in schools, Anadolu Agency reports.
A group of teachers and staff at the Maurice-Utrillo High School in Stains organised a strike and demonstration against the ban. Students and parents joined the demonstration in front of the school.
The staff read a statement that said the French school system is among the most unequal among the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development countries.
It noted that, instead of tackling inequality, the government has turned to banning the abaya and the men’s robe called kamis.
Macron: France will be ‘uncompromising’ over abaya ban in schools
Myriam, a member of the Abayama Do Not Touch Community, told Anadolu the abaya ban “persecutes” Muslim girls and violates freedoms and is discriminatory and Islamophobic.
Today Muslim girls are asked to be invisible and are treated as second-class citizens
she said.
French Education Minister, Gabriel Attal, announced last week that students wearing the traditional over-garments will not be able to attend classes when the new school year begins Monday.
The controversial move sparked backlash toward the government which has been criticised for targeting Muslims with statements and policies in recent years, including raids on mosques and charitable foundations, and an “anti-separatism” law that slaps wide-ranging restrictions on the community.
France: 300 Muslim girls go to school in abaya despite ban