French Councillor Prays After Communist Mayor Allows Veiled Women
A French conservative councillor recited the Hail Mary with a crucifix after the Communist mayor rejected his proposal to ban Islamic veils from council proceedings.
Kevin Nader, a Rassemblement National councillor, made the dramatic gesture during a heated municipal council meeting in Ivry-sur-Seine on Thursday evening, according to Brussels Signal. The incident occurred after Mayor Philippe Bouyssou rejected Nader’s amendment calling for strict secularism in the council chamber.
Nader had proposed changes to the council’s internal regulations that would prohibit visible religious symbols for both elected officials and members of the public attending sessions. Several women wearing Islamic veils were seated in the public gallery at the time.
The amendment was swiftly voted down by Bouyssou, whose municipality has been governed by the French Communist Party for more than 110 years.
After the proposal failed, Nader stood and declared that since the council refused to operate under the principle of secularism, it would instead be placed under the sign of the Cross. He then produced a crucifix and recited the entire Hail Mary prayer aloud before the assembly.
Bouyssou reacted with visible anger to the Catholic display, immediately suspending the session and denouncing Nader’s action as a political crime. The Communist mayor accused the RN councillor of stigmatizing municipal councillors and insulting the Ivry council in an unprecedented manner.
The mayor subsequently referred the matter to the prefect of Val-de-Marne, claiming Nader had undermined republican values and attempted to sow division.
Nader defended his conduct by arguing he was simply exposing the mayor’s double standard on secularism. He maintained that permitting veiled women in the council while refusing to enforce religious neutrality demonstrated clear anti-secular bias.
The RN councillor insisted that secularism must apply equally to all citizens or not at all, highlighting what he characterized as selective enforcement of France’s laïcité principles by the Communist administration.
The confrontation underscores deepening tensions in France over the application of secularism in public institutions, particularly regarding Islamic religious practice versus traditional Christian expression.
With information from Brussels Signal
