Image via WikipediaVeiled Muslim women must uncover their faces at airport security checkpoints.
It's common sense and I wouldn't be blogging about it again*, except that I read that Air Canada is worried about offending people and is not bothering to match the faces behind the veils to their passport photos. (Veiled Security, Sunday Sun, 8/01/10, Brian Lilley, Bryn Weese)
The Canadian public's right to safety is what matters here. If the priority is a woman's facial modesty over the security of hundreds or even thousands of people, then veiled women should not fly.
There should be no arguing this point.
Nor should we be arguing about whether to ban the niqab altogether.
The state should not have the right to tell women how we can or cannot dress.
The greatest shame in this story belongs to Air Canada. Rather than take high road, apologize and take immediate steps to tighten security, the company threatened the whistle blower with a lawsuit after he posted a video that showed two veiled women boarding an Air Canada, Montreal to London flight, without being checked.
I think he should get a medal.
2 comments:
We have gone to the ultimate in being politically correct, at humongous risk to not only our individual safety, but also to the safety of the greater public. Perhaps when I fly again, if I fly again, I'll identify myself as a muslim woman, wear a veil and fax my passport in. Who was to say that there wasn't a man(men) dressed as women in the group whose "breasts" were explosive devices taped to their chest. The airline itself should be sued for breach of trust.
I too worry about male terrorists dressing as women. Big fuss today though. It makes me happy to think that one man & his camera could change wht needed to be changed.
Thanks for your comment!
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