Council of Europe’s Hijab Campaign Faces Backlash

The Council of Europe (COE) pulled out ads for a campaign aimed at countering discrimination against European Muslim women who chose to wear head coverings. The Council of Europe is an inter-governmental human rights group with 47 member states. CoE also took down its Twitter post related to the campaign.

France Honors Teacher Beheaded for Blasphemy One Year After His Death

Schools across France paid homage in memory of Samuel Paty, a 47-year old history and geography teacher at the College Bois-d'Aulne in Conflans-Sainte-Honorine. French Prime Minister Jean Castex on Saturday, October 16, one year after Paty's murder.

France Moves Forward in Criminalizing Gay Conversion Therapy

On October 5, 2021, France's Parliament voted unanimously in favor of a proposed law that would ban conversion therapies. The proposed law will also penalize practitioners and perpetrators with a jail sentence and a fine.

Report Reveals 330,000 Victims of Sexual Abuse By French Catholic Church

A 2,500-page report documenting more than 330 thousand cases of sexual abuse was released by a commission headed by France’s Jean-Marc Sauve on October 5, 2021. The document also counted 3 thousand priests and clergy members, including other church servants involved in the coordinated coverup. Victims and advocates believe that the report is long overdue but welcomes it warmly.

Rwandan Refugee Turns Himself In, Admits to Killing French Priest

On August 9, 2021, Emmanuel Abayisenga walked into a gendarmerie (military police station) in Vendee, western France. Abayisenga reported the murder of the priest and “testified” that he was the perpetrator. The gendarmes immediately detained him. Police officers from Mortagne-Sur-Sevre were dispatched to the location to conduct an investigation.

Daycare Accused of Discriminating Against Kids with Muslim-sounding Names

In November 2020, Humza Yousaf — Scotish Secretary of Health and the first non-white Muslim to hold office in the Scottish Cabinet. — and his wife Nadia El-Nakla applied for a nursery for their 2-year old daughter, Amal. Their application was immediately denied. The nursery, Little Scholars, cited the lack of available schedules.

Secular Offense: Anti-Islamic Separatism Bill Passes French Lower House

Gerald Darmanin, France’s Interior Minister, in an interview with RTL radio in February 2021, commented on the proposed Anti-Separatism Bill. Darmanin describes the bill as tough but necessary, calling it “an extremely strong secular offensive.” The bill passed the lower house of the French parliament on Friday, July 23, 2021. Darmanin sponsored the bill with the support of his party, La République En Marche.

11 Convicted For Harassing French Atheist Teen Over Anti-Islam Views

On June 7, in a first-of-its-kind ruling, a French court convicted 11 out of 13 accused of cyberbullying a teenager over her views against Islam on social media. The 18-year-old started receiving threatening messages after her video criticizing Islam and the Quran posted last year from her social media accounts went viral.

French Senate Bans Hijab for Muslim Women Under Age 18

France’s move to outlaw wearing the hijab in public places for girls under age 18 was proposed under France’s “Separatist Bill” and approved by Members of Parliament (MP) on February 16th. The French Senate decided in favor of the bill on March 30th.

The Separatist Bill was officially named for “reinforcing Republican principles.” The objective of this legislation is to give France the resources to fight Islamic radicalism.

Five Arrested For Threatening Teen Who Said “Islam is a ‘S**t’ Religion”

Police recently arrested five people for making death threats against the French teenager who said Islam is a ‘shit’ religion in a viral video.

Mila, the teenage girl (her last name is kept private), previously defended her intense atheist beliefs on French television after she offended Islam. During one outburst, she said the Quran is ‘full of hate.’