19 June 2010

It's not in our interest to ban the burka

Religious tolerance – and I mean of Muslims, too – is not only right, it is in our interest. When I read that Barcelona has become the latest European city to ban the burka in civic buildings, I shudder. Is there a faster way to create an “us” against “them” mentality? There are 300,000 (out of a population of 1.5 million) Muslims in Barcelona.

Their reaction to such diktats will be twofold: resentment with an attendant sense of victimhood; and further segregation of women. Given that they will no longer be able to ensure their wives’ and daughters’ modesty (as they see it), Muslims may keep them behind locked doors. [telegraph.co.uk] Read more