The phenomenon is worrying the French. Three quarters (75%) of French people are concerned about the increasing number of religious (e.g. Islamic veil) or so-called “traditional” garments at school, according to a poll by CSA for CNEWS published on Wednesday June 15.
Specifically, 43% of respondents said they were “very concerned” and 32% “somewhat concerned”. In contrast, 13% are “somewhat not” concerned and 12% are “not at all” concerned.
It is remarkable that there is a huge difference in the assessment depending on the age of the respondents. Younger people say that they are much less concerned about the issue than older people. Thus, 18 to 24 year olds are the only ones who are in the majority “not worried” (at 58%). In contrast, the proportion of concerned people rises steadily in the different age groups and reaches 87 % among those 65 and older.
As for the results of the survey in terms of political affinity of the respondents, a majority of each political tendency shows concern about the phenomenon. However, there are major differences between supporters of the left and the right.
Thus, 53% of Insoumis say they are concerned, compared to 70% of Socialists, 84% of Macronists, 95% of Republicans and even 100% of Reconquête sympathisers. It is noteworthy that people who feel close to the Rassemblement National are less worried than the rest of the right, with as much as 90 %.
As a reminder, this survey comes at a time when a confidential memo from the Service central du renseignement territorial (SCRT), released this week, states that 144 violations of the secularity law, which concerns the prohibition of the wearing of religious signs or garments in schools, middle schools and high schools, were recorded in the second quarter of 2022, compared to 97 violations in the first quarter. A 48% increase in just a few months, although these figures have been rising for several years (150 incidents located in the whole of 2018).
The phenomenon thus comes up against the law forcefully, in particular the 2004 Law on Religious Symbols in Public Schools. This law states that “in public schools, secondary schools and high schools, the wearing of signs or garments by which pupils demonstrate their religious affiliation is prohibited”. It adds that “the house rules recall that the imposition of disciplinary proceedings is preceded by a dialogue with the pupil.” […]cnews