At least 15 cities in France just banned burkinis, beach attire worn by Muslim women. This is blatant discrimination.
Instead of promoting peace and understanding among citizens, the Prime Minister's actions are in essence promoting violence and discrimination. According to reports, he feels that burkinis represent the "enslavement of women that is not compatible with French values."
However, the women who wear them say they do so to avoid being sexualized. This is their right. Nobody should be told what clothes to wear. This is nothing more than Islamophobia and infringes upon a person's freedom of expression and religion.
Please tell France to REVERSE its ban on burkinis. It's a violation of human rights and unfairly targets women. It also sets a dangerous precedent on the rights of all people!
We (the undersigned) are appalled at your city's ban on burkinis.
Coercing a women out of the burqa is JUST AS BAD as coercing her into one.
Placing a ban on the clothes women freely choose to wear is enslavement to a certain type of dress and simply provides police the authority to harass women. Consider the woman in Nice, who was photographed being forced to undress on a public beach and was ticketed for wearing a burkini.
Instead of placing restrictions on people who are being attacked for the clothes they wear, why not advocate for peace and tolerance for the human rights of all people?
We implore you to REVERSE your burkini bans.