The first round of France's legislative elections saw an extraordinary rise in support for the far right.
The National Rally (RN) and its supporters may win power on Sunday, July 7, next week. Not only with a slight majority, but also with an absolute one, and there's a good chance of that happening.
This situation poses significant threat on the muslim population living in France who are now left fearing rising Islamophobia and discrimination.
Signs of this rightward tilt are becoming more noticeable as France recovers from the enormous damage inflicted by many terrorist attacks by Islamic extremists during the preceding six years.
According to opinion polls, the spate of attacks has turned many French people against Muslims.
Perhaps more than any other country in the world, secularism has a rich, nuanced, and complex symbolic connotation in France. There's more to it than just keeping religion and state apart.
Le Pen, the far-right activist, has advocated for the prohibition of the hijab in public areas
Her protégé Jordan Bardella—who may succeed Le Pen as prime minister of France—has referred to the veil as a “tool of discrimination.”
All these have left the French Muslims feeling like foreigners in their own country.
The government has also promised to reduce immigration and take stricter stand on European Union Rules
The fear is such stance would institutionalize discrimination and marginalize the French Muslims further.
The outcomes of this election could alter the political dynamics of Europe beyond France by favouring the far-right more.
Therefore, France's secularism needs to be protected at all cost.
It is the duty of the government to ensure protection of rights of all the nation's citizens irrespective of their race, ethnicity or religion.