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.

Danish Creator of Famed Muhammad cartoon, Kurt Westergaard, dies at 86

Kurt Westergaard,a Danish cartoonist for Jyllands-Posten conservative newspaper since the 1980s, dies at age 86. According to the Danish Berlingske newspaper’s interview with the family, he died in his sleep after suffering from deteriorating health.

Ex-Muslims Call Out Facebook: New Hate Speech Policy or Blasphemy Law?

In a press release posted on the Ex-Muslims of North America's website, the group's director, Sarah Haider, responded to a letter from the Director of Content Policy Stakeholder Engagement for Facebook, Peter Stern. In her response, Haider explained how and why Facebook's new Content Policy is facilitating harm for marginalized groups such as atheists and other non-religious communities.

EU’s Top Court Bans Wearing the Hijab at Work?! It’s not that simple.

According to the EU’s top court ruling, companies in the European Union (EU) may now mandate that Muslim employees refrain from wearing a headscarf. Companies may only ban employees from wearing Islamic head coverings if required to project an image of neutrality to customers, the court said on Thursday.

Hate Site “Auctioned Off” Indian Muslim Women

An app called Sulli Deals has been posting personal information and pictures of Muslim women in India, tagging them, and posting them as “deal of the day.” The slew of posts and auctioning happened as early as the first week of July, until recently when the app was taken down.

Texas Judge Rules Sharia Divorce Proceeding Must Be Observed

A County District Judge in Texas ordered a woman seeking a divorce to adhere to the prenuptial agreement she signed. The agreement dictates that a divorce can only be mediated by a Fiqh panel. Judge Andrea Thompson passed the decision in March 2021, ordering Mariam Ayad to divorce her husband, Ayad Hashim Latif, arbitrated by Sharia law.

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.

British MP Effectively Argues for Blasphemy Law in UK Parliament

On July 6, Naz Shah — Bradford Labour MP (UK) — delivered an impassioned speech in Parliament during a discussion for the Police, Crime, Sentencing, and Courts (PCSC) Bill . In her speech, Shah has directly compared the “emotional harm” of the cartoon depictions of the Prophet Muhammad and the destruction of status. She also asked if there is a “hierarchy of sentiments” since the British Government is planning to impose prison sentences of up to 10 years and none for drawing cartoons of Muhammad.

Fatwa Issued Against Fortnite Video Game

On June 30, the Rabat-Al-Azhar Fatwa Global Center, the top Sunni Islamic authority, has issued a fatwa against the battle royale game, Fortnite.

New Legal Complaint Filed against Twitter for Hindu Goddess Art

Twitter's India division is under fire for allowing the Atheist Republic’s Twitter account to post “blasphemous” images of the Hindu Goddess Kali. The complainant is a Delhi-based lawyer, Aditya Singh Deshwal.

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