Bill 21: Should police officers be able to wear religious symbols?

“There is no proof that Quebec’s prohibition on officers wearing religious symbols provides any true public benefit,” said Michael Mostyn, CEO of B'nai Brith Canada.

B’nai Brith says it surveyed police forces across the country and found accommodations for officers who wear religious garments is common across jurisdictions.

Leaders of the group called Quebec an "anomaly" in Canada, due to its controversial secularism law, also known as Bill 21, which barres people holding positions of authority, such as teachers and police officers, from wearing religious garments.

The group, which has long been opposed to the law, renewed calls for change after the U.S. state of Connecticut passed a new law requiring police forces to accommodate religious headwear.

"Following Connecticut's example will permit Canadian police departments to benefit from a larger, more diverse pool of talented candidates," said Marvin Rotrand, B'nai Brith Canada's national director of its League for Human Rights.

He says changing the law, at least with regard to police, could help to mitigate Montreal’s challenges with retaining staff.

Two weeks ago, Montreal police lost 10 officers, including seven due to reasons other than retirement.

"The departments we surveyed [elsewhere in Canada] said the minor uniform changes were supported by the public, and officers who wear religious symbols are as professional and effective as those who don't," said Rotrand.

"The RCMP [has] agreed to allow officers to wear their own kippahs until such time as an approved version is available in the force's stores," B'nai Brith notes of the head covering worn by Jewish men.

He also said officers wearing religious symbols are granted “an ‘in’ to various communities,” adding visual indicators of faith build “public trust.”

“It builds dialogue,” he said.

‘AN IMPORTANT SUBJECT FOR US’: LEGAULT

The Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) party, led by Premier François Legault, drove the bill to pass in 2019.

Bill 21 has been challenged in court and sparked some backlash from the public, both in and outside of Quebec. On Wednesday, the incumbent premier defended the law once again.

“It's an important subject for us. We think that someone in a position of authority should not wear a religious symbol and shouldn’t send a religious message,” said Legault, adding that such laws also exist in other countries.

B’nai Brith challenged the premier’s position the following day.

“[We ask Legault] to release any evidence that his practice is beneficial to public security or society,” said Mostyn.

“We suspect he will not be able to offer any real proof other than he himself believes it to be true,” he added.

“We see the province’s claim of state neutrality as simply excluding talented individuals who are from religious minorities.” 

-- with files from CTV News' Rachel Lau and Luca Caruso-Moro.