Religious clothing generally allowed in U.S. schools
(AP) -- French President Jacques Chirac's call to ban religious symbols and clothing in state schools and hospitals has met with controversy in France and around the globe. What's the policy in the United States?
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American students generally have the right to wear religious garb such as a Jewish skullcap, a Muslim scarf or a cross in public school, although restrictions can be made if the school has a dress code that is not directed at a particular faith.
For example, a school trying to limit gang activity may set a dress code that incidentally bars religious clothing like headwear, according to Jeffrey Sinensky, general counsel for the American Jewish Committee.
If a school has such a dress code, administrators still have the power to make exceptions if a student asks to wear a religious item. School officials usually accommodate students, though occasionally disputes arise that make their way into court, said Sinensky and Ibrahim Hooper, of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, a civil rights group.
Hooper said there have been sporadic cases in which school districts have attempted to ban headscarves or persuade Muslim girls not to wear them, usually from a mistaken belief that they disrupt the school environment. But the conflicts have usually been quickly resolved, he said.
Rules regarding what teachers can wear are different. Several states bar public school teachers from wearing religious clothing, in an attempt to have a religiously neutral classroom.
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