It is Groundhog Day for Muslims in Australia. More than eight years since her first attempt, Pauline Hanson, fresh from rubbing shoulders with far-right extremists in the United States, has dug deep into her closet, dusted off her burqa and decided to unleash on Muslims again.

Pauline Hanson wears a burqa in the Senate on Monday.Credit: Dominic Lorrimer

The fact that this is One Nation’s number one priority as we reach the end of another parliamentary year is further evidence of its hollow agenda. One Nation has nothing to offer Australians struggling with the cost of living and housing. It never has. All it has are pathetic but damaging publicity stunts. It has always flipped through the book of racist and Islamophobic policy and chosen the page that best meets its divisive agenda at the time. This time it landed on the burqa again.

But this is not really about a burqa. It’s not really about what a woman can or cannot wear, which should never be up for any debate. It is about One Nation trying to spark a culture war that distracts people from the real issues they face. It is about using an item of clothing to bring to the surface........

© The Sydney Morning Herald