thanks Robb!!! like your Kantian vision of things!!!

 

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Date: Wed, 4 Nov 2009 15:05:00 +0000
Subject: Re: [Raquel's room] RE: Blurring identities...Is this a secular society or what??...
From: rob.loggie@googlemail.com
To: rolli2006@hotmail.com

To be 'educated' under the watchful eye of religious symbols is a contradiction in terms. It is the displaying of a religious symbol in a place of education that constitutes an infringement of human rights. 

I, therefore, agree with and like the idea of the 'domestic sphere' but if by 'domestic' we mean behind the front door of the home what do we do about the interface between the 'personal' and 'public' spheres and the wearing of crucifixes, skull caps, hijab and burka? 

Unlike France, (and strangely enough, the USA, when its constitution was first drawn up - it was in the mid-1950's that Congress added the phrase 'one nation under God' to the Pledge of Allegiance) the UK is not a secular state and has an established religion with the head of state as the head of that religion which therefore becomes almost a state religion (c.f. Iran). 

The implication that is usually drawn from this is that displays of that religion's symbols on the person and in public places is to be accepted.  However, in terms of multiculturalism and human rights it might therefore follow that the display of all religious symbols in the personal and public spheres is to be accepted. 

A follow on from this is that if the established religion has the accepted right to establish its own places of education so should any other religion; hence the proliferation of faith schools as encouraged by Blair (for his own covert/personal reasons?) in which, of course, religious symbols abound.

Which (almost) brings us full circle to the Italian school situation.

The answer?  The disestablishment of the church, the declaration of a secular state and the abolition of all faith schools (oh yes, and the abolition of the display of any religious symbols in schools).

Apologies for the length, I didn't mean to write that much!

Rob

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