The National Assembly of Quebec on Thursday passed Bill 9, “An Act respecting the reinforcement of laicity in Québec,” which bans prayer spaces in public institutions, such as universities, and collective prayers in public spaces, such as parks, without a permit from the city. It also extends a ban on wearing religious symbols to government-subsidized daycare workers, with an exemption for current workers. This would include crosses. The bill builds on two previously passed laws bolstering secularism. One of them, Quebec’s Bill 21, is currently before the Supreme Court of Canada.
The Act’s other provisions include a prohibition for public institutions, such as hospitals, from offering food based solely on religious tradition without offering alternatives. Public subsidies for private religious schools whose selection process for students or staff is based on their religion are to be phased out. In 2024, the Montreal Gazette reported there were 50 private religious schools in Quebec, supported by a total of $160 million a year from the state, as follows: 27 Catholic, 14 Jewish, 4 Muslim, 2 Protestant Evangelical, 2 Armenian and one Greek Orthodox, the newspaper reported.
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