Education authorities force Valencia high school to let pupil in 'hiyab' back to class
Tuesday, September 20, 2016 @ 11:27 PM
A SPANISH teenager of Moroccan descent has been allowed back to school after over a week at home following the headmaster's orders that she should not return if she planned to wear her hiyab, or headscarf.
Takwa Rejeb, a Muslim born in Spain to Moroccan parents and planning to study an FP (Formación Profesional, or the Spanish answer to the BTEC route) in tourism, was sent home from the Benlliure high school in Valencia based upon what SOS Racism called 'a closed and overly-literal interpretation' of the centre's dress code, which bans balaclavas, woolly hats and baseball caps if they obscure the wearer's face.
A hiyab just covers the hair and throat, and is very similar to the hair-covering scarves often worn by African, Afro-Caribbean or Afro-Latin women, and is a cultural as well as a religious symbol.
Regional education authorities, headed up by minister Vicent Marzà, has tackled the issue with the school in question and with others which have taken a similar attitude.
Marzà's department says it plans to draft an urgent regional law on school dress code to prevent similar situations from recurring.
“Our ultimate aim is to guarantee the right to education for all pupils, and we need to draw on all tools necessary to encourage acceptance and tolerance of cultural diversity in Valencia region schools,” education autorities say.
The General Directorate of Education Policy is planning a day-long conference on 'new challenges and social contexts' to 'deal with cultural diversity in the classroom' and 'ensure good inter-cultural practices' in schools.
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