As I articulated in an earlier post, it appears that service provision where newcomers are obliged to interact with established settlers of European background is the site of these battles. It is one of the few places where the structure of the service permits those in charge of ESL/FSL classroom to exert power that they would not have in other service provisions.
I dislike the current power relations that constitute many ESL and FSL environments, and I do not think that the niqab issue is *the* issue in these environments. Rather, these environments are also rife with cultural imperialism and patronizing and belittling of participants. The niqab fits into this issue in these environments, too.
I am not denying islamophobia, but I hope that people can acknowledge the larger issues that surround these environments. It should be no suprise that islamophobia is becoming legitimized in this learning environment if we do acknowledge the problems with these environments.
That said, there are great ESL/FSL environments where professors are cognizant of the power relations in transcultural environments and try to negotiate an inclusive atmosphere. Clearly the places where these niqab-wearing women went did not have these qualities.