In the wake of the story of a Quebec woman who wears a niqab (a head garment which is worn over the entire face with a slit for the eyes) filing a human rights complaint over her expulsion from a French course at a Montreal-area college, federal Conservative Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Josée Verner waded-into the fracas last week.In an interview with a Quebec City radio station, Verner went on the offensive against Muslim women that choose to wear the niqab. She called it a mask, said she wouldn't open the door to a woman wearing one, nor would she want them using her hypothetical day care centre. She also ponders if they should go to the bank or not:
"It has nothing to do with religious beliefs, even though there's a debate that should take place there," Verner told CHOI-FM in Quebec City. "But quite frankly, for someone who goes around who is quote-unquote masked, no matter what time of day, if someone rang on my door bell wearing a mask, I wouldn't open the door."
"If I was in charge of a daycare, I wouldn't allow a child to leave with someone if I could not see their face," Verner added. "I don't think I'd be able to go into a bank with a mask on my head."
Cultural sensitivity, thy name is Josée Verner. Wonder if she'll be getting a call from an enraged Jason Kenney...
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