Quebec judge denies request to suspend ban on prayer room spaces in public schools
Groups argued students were threatened with disciplinary measures for praying
A Quebec Superior Court justice has denied a request to suspend the province's ban on prayer room spaces in public schools.
The Canadian Civil Liberties Association (CCLA) and the National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM) had argued that the ban was causing irreparable harm to Muslim students.
Justice Lukasz Granosik disagreed, ruling today that the groups did not prove that there was an urgent need to stay the province's decree while their case is heard on its merits.
Quebec Education Minister Bernard Drainville in April barred public schools from making space available to students for prayer, citing the province's policy on institutional secularism.
Drainville had said that students would still be allowed to pray discreetly and silently.
But the groups argued that Muslim prayers require physical action and that students had been threatened with disciplinary measures for attempting to pray on school property.
"While this is not the decision we had hoped for, we will not stop until our children's constitutional rights are protected," Stephen Brown, CEO of NCCM said in a statement this afternoon. "Our legal team is reviewing the judge's decision and we will decide on our next steps soon."
"Despite this disappointing outcome, the court indicated that the prohibition on visible prayers in schools results in irreparable harm to religious students in Quebec," Harini Sivalingam, member of the CCLA, said in a statement. "We will continue to stand up for the rights and freedoms of Quebec students."