Woman in hijab on signage sparks debate in Montreal

Montreal City Hall has found itself at the heart of a heated debate.

A welcome sign featuring a woman wearing a hijab is set to be taken down, sparking reactions from all sides.

It’s been displayed at city hall since June, after the building reopened following renovations.

In the centre of the image is a woman wearing a hijab, and here’s been a chorus of calls to take it down.

The Mouvement Laique Quebecois, which advocates for state secularism, was one of those voices.

“It doesn’t represent diversity... it excludes all the people who aren’t represented by that image,” says the group’s president Daniel Baril.

This week the group filed a series of complaints with the Human Rights Commission stating the sign violates municipal and provincial laws.

On a talk show last Sunday, Mayor Valerie Plante said it’ll be removed because it caused “discomfort.”

Yesterday, speaking to reporters, Plante added she doesn’t want Muslim women to feel erased and the sign is part of a rotating exhibit.

“Every time we do some museum stuff like that it changes so it’s normal. For me to say that it will be changed is something that we would have done anyway,” she added.

National Council of Canadian Muslims president Stephen Brown isn’t convinced.

“They’re Montrealers just as much as everyone else and their visibility shouldn’t be filtered out just because it causes some people a form of anxiety or discomfort,” he said.

The sign will stay in its place until the exhibit is renewed in 2025, a city spokesperson confirmed today.