Quebec is turning up the heat on religious displays in public with a brand-new law called Bill 9, introduced by the ruling Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) on Thursday. This sweeping law bans prayer in public institutions such as colleges and universities. It also forbids group prayers on public roads and in parks, with heavy fines of up to C$1,125 for those breaking the rule. Short events that get prior approval are the only exceptions. CAQ’s game plan for secularism started in 2019 with the much-debated Bill 21, which stopped public workers like judges, police, and teachers from wearing religious symbols. Now, the government wants to push this ban further. It aims to include anyone working in daycares, colleges, universities, and private schools. Plus, full face coverings like niqabs will be banned for everyone in these places, including students. Jean-François Roberge, Quebec’s secularism minister, says the new actions are important steps toward a fully secular province. He criticized universities for allowing prayer rooms, saying, “the schools are not temples or churches or those kinds of places.” This new ban on public prayer followed a protest where Montreal4Palestine held prayers without permission outside Notre-Dame Basilica, blocking traffic and public spaces. “It’s shocking to see people blocking traffic, taking possession of the public space without a permit, without warning, and then turning our streets, our parks, our public squares into places of worship,” Roberge said. The government will also limit kosher and halal food options in public institutions. He insisted, “We think that when the state is neutral, Quebecers are free,” and denied claims that this law singles out minorities. “We have the same rules applying to everyone,” he added. But Muslim students feel deeply hurt. Ines Rarrbo, a first-year mechanical engineering student, told Canadian Press, “It’s as if we’re not welcome here.” She described the new rules as a “personal attack against our community.” Stephen Brown, president of the National Council of Canadian Muslims, slammed the law as “political opportunism,” saying it worsens identity politics and division. The Assembly of Quebec Catholic Bishops also reacted strongly, calling Bill 9 a “radical infringement on the rights and freedoms of the Quebec population” and said the government has not shown any real need for this law. Remember, Bill 21 already bans religious symbols for judges, police officers, prison guards, and teachers while at work. Other public workers like bus drivers, doctors, and social workers only have to keep faces uncovered. Though these laws violate human rights charters in Quebec and Canada, courts have allowed them under a special legal tool called the “notwithstanding clause.” This clause lets the government bypass certain rights to pass laws it believes are necessary. Like Bill 21, this new Bill 9 uses the notwithstanding clause early on to protect itself from legal challenges. However, Canada’s Supreme Court is set to review the use of this controversial clause in the coming months, which could shake things up even more. Will Quebec’s fight for secularism win the day, or will the voices of religious minorities ring louder? The drama continues.