Expat Community > France

Jono55
Joined 2019
Posts: 2

Appearing religious in France?

5 years ago

Hi,

I have been thinking about moving to France to teach English in private schools and I recently came across the law that prohibits religious clothing and symbols in public and in public schools.

I am a devout Buddhist and as part of my practice I abstained from wearing all other clothing except for a cotton maroon, grandad shirt, cotton drawstring trousers and a large shawl measuring 9" by 6".
When I dress in the shawl it can somewhat look like a robe and often many people mistake me for a Buddhist monk in public, although there are many signs that prominently tell that I'm not.

I know that if working in private English schools in France, it is up to the employer whether or not they accept me dressed the way I am; but what about walking around in public?

I am used to people staring and making comments here in Britain and that will always happen here in the West unfortunately, but what I wouldn't want is the French police or French officials harassing me and questioning me on a weekly or daily basis about the way I am dressed.

Quite simply, the way I dress is very plain with no patterns or symbols attached to it. By wearing this I'm not supporting or showing pride to any sort of faith. I do not wear these specific clothes to tell everyone I'm Buddhist or because I'm Buddhist, or that anyone should convert in any way. The shawl, shirt and trousers are not specifically religious or made to be religious, they're just everyday clothing items brought from eBay and worn in a way that's needed to keep the body warm, cool and protected from the rain without the need of a coat, umbrella or extra clothing (which is where the 'monk' look stems from since it has a lot of practicalities)

So as you can see I don't really wear it because I'm religious or showing off propaganda, I wear it for practical reasons because it's the only clothing I wear and I don't want to repeat this on a daily basis in English or in French to officials or police so I can live my daily life, it just isn't worth it.

This question really hinges on whether it's worth considering a move to France, but I need to make sure that in terms of legislation, I'm allowed to even be seen on the streets.

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