Now playing on a news channel near you: Hérouxville II: Beyond the Veil.  From Montreal comes the story of an immigrant who was expelled from a language class - by no less than the Quebec Minister of Immigration herself – for refusing to remove her niqab.

The immigrant was a Muslim of Egyptian origin who enrolled in a French language course at the CEGEP St Laurent, a public college in the north end of the city.  One of the key elements of the class was communication and interaction between the students.  The woman wore a niqab, a garment which covers all body parts except the eyes, and asked that the school accommodate her religious requirement for modesty when dealing with her classmates and the teacher. 

As a result, the woman received some instruction without the niqab from a female teacher in a corner of the classroom, away from other students.  The teacher also allowed her to give an oral presentation at the back, facing away from the class.  However, the woman complained that some male students could see her face and asked that they be moved to a different part of the room.  And when the female teacher was replaced by a male instructor, the woman refused to remove her niqab, making it impossible to judge her elocution of French words. 

“It is important for the teacher to see the student’s mouth to teach good elocution. A niqab interferes with that objective.” Yves Fortin, aide to Quebec Immigration Minister Yolande James

Not surprisingly, the atmosphere in the school became more than a little strained.  After several attempts at compromise, immigration officials told the woman she would be expelled from the course if she did not remove her niqab.  She refused, the Minister authorized the expulsion, and the case is now before the Quebec Human Rights Commission.

National Post