Overview
- The LFI deputy was appointed this week to the Conseil supérieur des programmes, which issues opinions that help shape national curricula and confers strategic influence on its members.
- In 2024 he opposed a blanket ban on the abaya, arguing that headteachers should decide case by case and saying some issues are resolved through education rather than regulation.
- Responding to the renewed scrutiny, Arenas now says he supports banning the abaya and any overt religious symbols and describes himself as a defender of a 100% secular school, rejecting accusations of communitarianism.
- Critics point to his four-year presidency of the FCPE, when a campaign poster showing a veiled woman on a school outing drew rebukes from then–education minister Jean‑Michel Blanquer.
- Opponents including RN deputy Hélène Laporte publicly attacked the choice, while Arenas posted on X that he was honored to contribute to reflections on the future of the education system.