A bill has been introduced to the Georgia state legislature that, if passed, would ban women from wearing burqas and Muslim veils while driving, walking in public, and taking a driver’s license photo, according to The Hill. The legislation was introduced by Jason Spencer, a Republican state representative of the Georgia state legislature.
The law's original intent was to prevent people — namely Ku Klux Klan members — from hiding their identity with a hood. Spencer's amendments would add "or she" to the language, thus extending the law to include Muslim women. The proposed amendments would also prevent Muslim women from covering in photographs on "any license, permit, or identification card" issued by the state or with authority from the state government.
“This bill is simply a response to constituents that do have concerns of the rise of Islamic terrorism,” Spencer said in a local TV interview, “and we in the state of Georgia do not want our laws used against us.”
It is law in Georgia that wearing a mask, hood, or face covering — intending to conceal one’s identity — on public property is currently a misdemeanor.
Updated at 4:30pm:
Republican Georgia state representative Jason Spencer has decided to withdraw HB3 after criticism even from within his own party.
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