

Some
years ago, I announced with shock and horror, that some French government
officials had begun aggressively attempting to ban "religious expressions"
in schools, including but not limited to Islamic, Jewish, and Sikh head
coverings. The racist and hypocritical laws somehow passed, despite
the protests from religious and secular people who believed that the bans
should not include clothing worn specifically for the purpose of modesty
and/or self defense. A person who wishes to cover themselves for
spiritual/psychological reasons is doing so for the same reasons that someone
undergoing chemotherapy may cover their head due to hair loss.
Wearing
modest clothing is not an exclusively religious act, and is in fact, separate
from one's religion. Taking off someone's clothes doesn't change
their belief system. To force someone to expose their body who
may have smooth skin is as much a violation of privacy and right to self
defense as to force someone photosensitive or with another skin disease,
to expose themselves.