MONTREAL — The Quebec government has passed sweeping new legislation that expands its controversial ban on religious symbols in public institutions, extending it to all school staff, volunteers, and students — and prohibiting anyone in schools from covering their face.
The law, adopted Thursday, strengthens the province’s secularism framework by broadening the scope of Bill 21, the 2019 law that barred public employees in positions of authority — such as teachers, police officers, and judges — from wearing religious symbols while on duty.
Under the new legislation, the ban now applies to all individuals working or interacting with students, including psychologists, janitors, cafeteria staff, and even volunteers such as library helpers. Students themselves will also be barred from wearing face coverings in classrooms or on school premises.
Quebec’s government says the goal is to ensure “neutrality and equality” in the province’s education system, which it views as a critical environment for reinforcing secular values. The law was tabled in response to an investigation into a Montreal elementary school, where officials claimed a group of teachers — many of North African descent — had imposed “autocratic” practices contrary to Quebec’s secular principles.
The provincial government has also signaled plans to extend the ban to daycare workers, further embedding its secularism policy across all levels of education.
While the legislation has drawn support from those who see it as reinforcing Quebec’s distinct identity and secular public institutions, it is expected to face strong opposition and possible legal challenges from civil rights and religious freedom advocates who argue it discriminates against religious minorities, particularly Muslim women who wear the hijab or niqab.
The new law marks one of the most significant expansions of Quebec’s secularism policy since the passage of Bill 21 — reigniting a heated national debate over the balance between religious freedom and state neutrality in Canada.