Is the wind blowing that way now?
July 13, 2010 · By Sean
With Quebec struggling through reasonable accomodation issues in order to preserve their heritage, France has just voted 335 to 1 on a total ban on of face-covering veils in public spaces.
Similar laws are pending in Belgium, Spain and some Italian municipalities.
Is this the way the wind is beginning to blow in Western Societies? I’m both encouraged and dismayed if this is true. Not specifically about the veils, but rather by the attitudes behind it.
As far as being encouraged goes, I’m pleased to see countries and societies standing up for their own way of life and culture and protecting it from being trampled over by the stampede of Cultural (Reasonable) Accommodation. I’ve previously discussed this issue in other aspects here, and here.
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. The reason why so many people want to come to Canada is because it was such a wonderful, stable, and respectful country. We had clear values and respect for one another’s differences. What brought us to that status was a legacy inherited from Britain and France of a predominately Christian philosophy and a structured but flexible legal system based on basic Christian values.
Just as Quebec and France and other countries have been trying to do, I agree that if faced with protecting my culture (which is what has made Canada for example, a wonderful place to live and why people want to come here) that there should be conditions upon migrating to my country.
Foremost, I want to ensure that migrants understand that when they come to Canada, it is to pursue a better life in a Canadian manner, not to seek to rebuild the country in an image of how they would have rather seen their country of origin under those cultural rules.
Increasingly, other countries are saying ‘We are not some place to be considered a tolerant blank-slate-state that you can come in and change to suit your own beliefs’.
I say that there is nothing wrong with this.
I appreciate the differences that other cultures and individuals bring with them, but I recognize that not all of it can, or should be tolerated in Canada. (see Sharia Law, Honor “Crimes”, etc). Those things are not Canadian and have no place in Canadian Society or Culture. Time and again, I’ve seen other countries stomp on those who say “In my country…” with an immediate and sometimes hostile “You are not in your country!”.
Why are we in Western Societies so afraid to do the same? Is this some form of White Guilt/Wealth Guilt/Survivor Guilt etc? Are we so ashamed of our own cultures and ways of life that we are unwilling as citizens to stand up and defend it?
And why should I be dismayed by this? Frankly, I’m dismayed that there is only a small handful of countries getting on board with protecting themselves and their own ways of life and culture from outside influences.
Personally, I’m willing to say “This is my country and my way of life and my home. If you choose to come to live in my house, there are different rules you’ll have to live by. If that’s unacceptable to you, then I respectfully suggest you find someplace else more to your liking.”
And there’s nothing wrong with that.
“This is my country and my way of life and my home. If you choose to come to live in my house, there are different rules you’ll have to live by. If that’s unacceptable to you, then I respectfully suggest you find someplace else more to your liking.”
… AMEN ti that !
Personally, I prefer freedom of religion and freedom of expression. Hopefully, when this debate arises in Canada, those are things we will think of as Canadian.
Good thing is if they get pissed off and leave then it is more jobs for the rest of us.
Jonathan, I agree. And those things are in fact an integral part of Canadian society and culture (section 13 of the CHRA notwithstanding). And as far as those things go however, those are the rights of the individual in their own homes and lives provided that they do not fly in contravention of Canadian laws and are not unduly imposed upon others.
The problem I have is when people attempt to change Canadian Laws they don’t like in order to better reflect a foreign culture or law that they are more comfortable with.
I keep saying, there’s about as much need for a burqua as there is for a ski mask. True freedom of association would take care of the rest.
Sean, could you clarify? You write:
I’m assuming that you don’t mean to say that individual freedom only exists in one’s home; that’d be no real freedom at all. However, since you write that you are “encouraged” by France banning veils in “public spaces”, I’m not really sure what to infer.
If Canada were to ban veils in public, that would be an attempt by people to change Canadian law they do not like.
Sure Jonathan. I said in the original post that it wasn’t specifically banning the veils that encouraged me or dismayed me, but rather the attitude behind it. It is the feeling of “need” to protect a national cultural identity and setting limits on accommodation as to what is reasonable or not; not the actual law itself.
Now Canada is different from France, of that there’s no question, and Canadians would likely approach things differently and choose to accept different things.
As far as individual freedoms go, I also included in their “lives” which is in part practiced in public.
People are free to practice the faith of their choice, the culture of their heritage and express themselves freely in public and private. However, as is often the cited example, if your culture, faith or personal expression require you to kill another human being as an article of devotion, that would be intolerable in our society and would not be accommodated. Granted it’s an extreme example, but it’s the clearest. That is something you would not be able to do even within your own home here in Canada.
Actually, it wouldn’t since there is no Canadian law or distinctly Canadian tradition that requires anyone, by law, to wear one. But as I said, Canadians tend to be a little more tolerant provided that there isn’t a clear and present danger to the individual (or those around them) by doing so.
Using this example though, should anyone try to force a woman in Canada to wear a veil against that person’s will because of their own personal religious or cultural beliefs, that would be an example of undue imposition of their beliefs on others. As there is no law that either requires it, or bans it, it remains a personal cultural choice and can not be enforceable in Canada.
Thanks for the clarification, Sean. I knew it was something like that, but I wanted to get it straight from you rather than misinterpreting.
The Charter does note freedom of expression and freedom of religion. That seems like Canadian law to me.
But not specifically to face veils. But I can acknowledge your position in the reverse. But also as I said, attitudes are different in Canada and I seriously doubt that Canadians would suffer a total ban in very broadly defined public spaces, as it appears the French are doing.
I would further say, that Canadians would attempt to reasonably accommodate the cultural considerations of hiding the female hair and face from men by ensuring that when having to provide proof of identity (ie. passports, drivers licences, security checks/screenings) that a woman would be present and available to carry out the procedure without violating the cultural requirements.