Quebec’s Secularism Act: ‘Secularism’ law forces Sikh woman teacher to relocate

Amrit Kaur, a resident of Montreal city, was at the forefront of the resistance to the secularism Act, passed by the legislature in the Francophone province in July.

A young turbaned Sikh woman has emerged as the most visible face of the adverse impact a controversial secularism law in Quebec is having, as she has been forced to relocate to another province for employment as a teacher.

Amrit Kaur, a resident of Montreal city, was at the forefront of the resistance to the secularism Act, passed by the legislature in the Francophone province in July. The severely restrictive law prohibits some public servants in positions of authority, including school teachers, police officers and judges, from displaying a visible symbol of faith including the turban.

As an observant Sikh who sports a turban, Kaur has been forced to move to Surrey town in British Columbia. She told Radio Canada International, “I have a new job as a high school teacher which I'm very excited about. It's unfortunate that I had to leave my home province to pursue my career.”

Kaur, who is also vice-president of the Quebec chapter of the World Sikh Organisation or WSO, is also part of the legal challenge to the law. While joining the case, WSO's president Mukhbir Singh said, “Québec’s An Act respecting the laicity of the state is deeply discriminatory and has an enormous impact on the Sikh community as well as others who wear religious symbols.”

British Columbia, meanwhile, has signalled its willingness to accept educators from Quebec fleeing the province due to the law, as Radio Canada cited its education minister Rob Fleming as saying, “We don't police what kind of faith or observances individuals have. We judge them on the kind of competencies and the job that they do for the public."

Kaur's relocation to Surrey comes as the largest school board in Quebec, Commission scolaire de Montréal or CSDM, prepares to apply the clauses of the secularism legislation in September. According to the Montreal Gazette, the CDSM had earlier resisted imposing the new rules, but is now going to comply.

While teachers who stay in the same position are exempt, those entering the profession like Kaur face the barrier in Quebec, having to choose between career and faith. As she told Radio Canada, “I have the privilege of leaving the province because I got a job outside, but there are still people who will endure the effects of Bill 21. Our lives are so disrupted. I'm very much a Quebecer and I'd always like to go back home.”