Me, My Headscarf, and I

This article was sent by Saida Ounnisi.

I'm Muslim and French; it's not an oxymoron, even if people in Europe think that we have the same political system like Tunisia, which can forbid headscarf and mosques. By the way, I'm originally from Tunisia; I never live in a country in which a practicing Muslim is something allowed by the State. In France, we have a very complicated relationship with all what is about religion. It is something which is imitated to the private space. But what is a private space in a centralized country in which welfare-state is so important and invasive. In all areas of life, State is present. We have one of the most important national administrations in the world, and in all steps in your life. The State is watching you. The State built its power against the Church (and not using the Church). After two centuries of measures weakening Church but not just Church, even religious feeling and religious references in all areas of public space (euh... keep in mind that everything is public space in France, the only one place considered as private is your home, after closing the door).
Well, all this for make you aware of the situation Muslims in France are living in. We, as French students, begin to study secularism and its importance since primary school when our teachers (most of them are from the Left or close to Marxism) hammer that we are very lucky to don't have to support a religion. No religion imposed, no religious courses, no mention of any religion inside school temple!

It is not something embarrassing, till the moment you decided to wear the well-called headscarf full-time and not just for going to the mosque or to visit your fundamentalist uncle Ali.
You discover suddenly that the country you are living in is very repressive. It denies you the fundamental individual right of free disposal of your body in the name of equality, in the name of liberty, in the name of feminism. But for you, the meaning of your veil is equality liberty and feminism. Like Sayyeda Khâdija and Sayyeda Aisha, your purpose in life is to protect yourself in order to make yourself more efficient in your own society. This incoherence and lack of understanding from French society and French government make you feel guilty because you are not a normal citizen but someone who is not at his place in this country.

Worst moment for Muslims student girls is the return to University. Always questioning, is the professor will be indulgent, is he fascist militant, do he have done Algeria War? Questions like this hammer her until the beginning of the course. The girls carry the fear to be revoked.

Even after 3 years in the same university, you can have some surprises. I'm student in La Sorbonne, last year, first day at New Year University in master of political science, after sitting down and get concentrated, my professor, who was looking at me since the beginning, asked me my name. I answered. He asked once against. I answered; he was maybe thinking that I was wrong, and that it's not my class. After this scene, he said ' sorry for that, I know that it is your right, but please, I'll ask you to leave my course, because seeing someone like you in my class is something really hard for me, I cannot accept that someone  can violate republican French principles like that. So if you please Lady'. This someone was me.

I felt so ashamed and stricken that I left the class looking for a calm place to sit and cry. Realizing that I'd just attempt to an offense, I asked for a change of professor and I went to the Police Station. I complained against him despite the intimidation of the police officer who said that isn't something serious. They maybe forget that I was a law student and that my little sister is specialized on public law. Well, the Professor was accosted by the Police for interrogation. But the University decided to organize a big mediation for funding a non juridical solution. I answered that my interest wasn't to create a new controversy about veil but to make people behaviour changing and respect us as human, as woman, as student. If he agrees for public apologies, written declaration and administrative admonition, I'm fine. He said yes, in order to close this so harm controversy. Indeed, Medias here love this kind of stuffs.

He did all what I asked. It washed my honour stained by his cowardice and I was rehabilitated within my class. I think that it will be the future of girls with hijabs, and as we call them here « les voilées », using law against Islamophobia. Claim our right by the force of law. Even if dialogue is important, France is not yet ready to accept all French people.