Photographs with different variations of headscarves are on display in the Otto-Hahn-School in Berlin on June 3, 2013. This week, a Berlin ...
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| Photographs with different variations of headscarves are on display in the Otto-Hahn-School in Berlin on June 3, 2013. This week, a Berlin court ruled teachers in public schools can't wear headscarves while on duty. File Photo by Stephanie Pilick/EPA |
By Ray Downs, UPI
A Berlin court upheld a law that prevents Muslim teachers from wearing headscarves in public schools.
The court in Berlin, a city-state in Germany, ruled that a state law prohibiting religious garb from being worn by teachers, police and court officials while on duty was constitutional.
The law had been challenged by a teacher who attempted to wear her headscarf while teaching at a primary school in 2015, according to the BBC. The woman argued that the Berlin law was unconstitutional because a federal court overturned a law prohibiting headscarves nationwide that year. But that ruling allowed states to create their own laws on the matter.
Berlin's "neutrality law does not violate the constitutional provisions," the court said in a press release, according to the Andalou Agency. The court also said that the teacher agreed to follow the neutrality law regarding headscarves when she accepted the position.
The Berlin court's ruling brought mixed reactions from Muslims in the capital city, with some praising the ban's motive of keeping religion out of public schools and others describing it as an assault on religious freedom, the BBC reported.
According to The Local, the ruling is still subject to appeal.
Although Berlin law prohibits teachers from wearing headscarves in public schools, female students are allowed to wear them.
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