French Burkini Ban

Overview

The French Burkini Ban refers to the prohibition of burkinis, a swimsuit designed in accordance with Islamic traditions regarding the modest dress of women, in public areas in various parts of France.

Background

In August 2009, staff at a pool in Emerainville, France stopped a woman from wearing a burkini swimsuit on the premises, claiming that the pool rules prohibiting people from "swimming while clothed" based on hygiene concerns.^[1] On June 9th, 2016, a pool near Regensburg, Germany banned burkinis on their premises. In August, Cannes mayor David Lisnard banned the burkini swimsuits from public beaches, claiming they were a "symbol of Islamic extremism."^[2]

Developments

Additional Bans

That month, up to 30 towns in France joined the ban, including Menton, Villeneuve-Loubet, Saint-Laurent-du-Var, Beaulieu-sur-Mer, Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat and Nice.

Online Response

Throughout the month of August, several news articles about the burkini bans reached the frontpage of the /r/worldnews subreddit.^{[6][7][8][9][10][11]} On August 26th, Redditor Smitheren uploaded a Polandball comic about the burkini ban, which accumulated more than 2,700 votes (82% upvoted) and 370 comments in the first 24 hours on /r/polandball.^[12]

Nice Police Enforcement

On August 23rd, The Guardian^[3] reported that French police made a woman remove her burkini on a beach in Nice (shown below). The Nice mayor's office subsequently denied she had been forced to remove the clothing, claiming she was showing officers her tunic underneath her clothing. The following day, Redditor hardypart submitted a photograph of the confrontation to /r/pics,^[6] where it gained over 5,100 votes (88% upvoted) and 2,400 comments within 48 hours.

Villeneuve-Loubet Ban Suspension

On August 25th, France's highest administrative court suspended the burkini ban enacted in Villeneuve-Loubet, finding that it "seriously and clearly illegally breached fundamental freedoms."^[5]

Search Interest

External References