# Anti-Islamic Sentiments Surface In Wake Of Restrictions On Veils May 15, 2010 Author: Edward Cody Source: The Washington Post Since she started wearing a full Islamic veil six weeks ago, Selma said, she has been stared at, frowned at, muttered to, mocked as a "ghost" and forced by a policeman to lift her veil to show her face. "In Belgium, it is forbidden to carry your religious convictions to their logical conclusion," the 22-year-old Brussels woman said, speaking on the condition that her full name not be used to avoid trouble for her family. These are uneasy times for the estimated 15 million Muslims of Western Europe, not only for fundamentalists such as Selma, but also for the vast majority who want to find their place as Muslims without confronting the Christian and secular traditions of the continent they have adopted as home. Responding to a wave of resentment unfurling across European societies, several governments have begun to legislate restrictions on the most readily visible of Islamic ways, the full-face veil. Outside the gilded halls of parliaments and ministries, meanwhile, anti-Islamic sentiments have risen to the surface in a surge of Internet insults and physical attacks against Muslim symbols. See also:- [ Advocacy/Government ](/news-stories/advocacygovernment) - [ Minaret Referendum in Switzerland ](/news-stories/minaret-referendum-switzerland) - [ Niquab or Burqa Controversies ](/news-stories/niquab-or-burqa-controversies) - [ Statistics ](/news-stories/statistics) - [ Violence/Vandalism ](/news-stories/violencevandalism) - [ Experience/Lifecycle Events/Expressions ](/news-stories/experiencelifecycle-eventsexpressions) - [ Islam in Europe ](/news-stories/islam-europe) - [ Religious Freedom ](/news-stories/religious-freedom) - [ Islam ](/religions/islam) - [ Civic ](/tags/civic) - [ International ](/tags/international) - [ Women ](/tags/women) Share on:- [ Facebook ](#) - [ Twitter ](#) - [ Linkedin ](#)