Charte des valeurs: des échos jusqu’en Turquie and Office of Religious Freedom

2013/12/11 Leave a comment

While the headline refers to the proposed Quebec charter, this is one of the few interviews that I have seen with the head of the Office of Religious Freedom, Andrew Bennett, on the nature of some of his discussions abroad.

Normal that once one opens these types of discussions with other countries that Canadian issues also get raised, with the proposed charter being an easy target. A bit ironic given the Canadian government’s criticism of many UN processes and committees that provide similar opportunities for criticism of Canada when we raise human rights or other issues.

Charte des valeurs: des échos jusqu’en Turquie | JOËL-DENIS BELLAVANCE | Politique canadienne.

Filed under Charte des valeurs québécoise, Interculturalisme, Multiculturalism, Religion Tagged with , , ,

What Hitchens got wrong: Abolishing religion won’t fix anything – Salon.com

2013/12/10 1 Comment

While I like a lot of what Hitchens wrote, I agree with the tenor of this article that Hitchens and the other “extreme” atheists have it wrong, that religion cannot explain all conflict in the world.

… I would like to suggest a truce — one originally proposed by the Catholic church and promoted by the eminent Stephen J. Gould. Science, the study of the natural world, and religion, the inquiry into the meaning of life (or metaphysics, more broadly) constitute non-overlapping magisteria. Neither can invalidate the theories of the other, if such theories are properly within their realm. Any theologian or scientist who steps out of their realm to speculate upon the other is free to do so, but must do so with an adequate understanding of the other’s realm.

Religion (either secular or theological) does not poison all of society and science should not be feared, but rather embraced. Both can bring humanity to new heights of empathy, imagination and progress. To quote the greatest American reformer, “Science investigates; religion interprets. Science gives man knowledge, which is power; religion gives man wisdom, which is control. Science deals mainly with facts; religion deals mainly with values. The two are not rivals.”

“New Atheists” believe that religion threatens progress and breeds conflict and that were religion eliminated, we would begin to solve the world’s problems. But abolishing religion is not only unfeasible, it would ultimately leave us no closer to truth, love or peace. Rather, we need to embrace the deep philosophical and spiritual questions that arise from our shared existence and work toward a world without deprivation. That will require empathy and multiculturalism, not demagoguery.

What Hitchens got wrong: Abolishing religion won’t fix anything – Salon.com.

Filed under Citizenship, Multiculturalism, Religion Tagged with , ,

Britain has an ethnic problem: the English

2013/12/09 Leave a comment

Good piece by Doug Saunders on how the “mainstream” white-origin English have fallen behind other ethnic communities in the UK:

These xenophobic attitudes are harming Britain’s economy. As the Economist recently wrote, the Prime Minister’s pledge to drive immigration below 100,000 a year has done serious damage – steep visa fees, quotas and restrictions have driven away foreign students, educated elites and investors, while many British companies are moving their operations overseas, where it’s easier to hire the best workers. And it is causing a fiscal crisis – according to the Office for Budget Responsibility, immigration rates will need to double if national debt is to be lowered to half its level (and UKIP’s immigration freeze would double public debt).

Don’t get me wrong about the English. I know quite a few English people who are rather decent (including my dear old Mum and Gran), and their culture is not without its charm. But they need help. Ethnic English numbers are growing, and if they’re allowed to gain any more influence in British society, they could be trouble.

Britain has an ethnic problem: the English – The Globe and Mail.

Filed under Multiculturalism Tagged with , ,

Interview on Policy Arrogance or Innocent Bias? – Hungarian Presence in Canada

2013/12/09 Leave a comment

My interview on Hungarian Presence.

Arrogance or bias? – Hungarian Presence in Canada.

Filed under Citizenship, Multiculturalism Tagged with ,

Quebec: Education charter chill

2013/12/07 Leave a comment

An in-depth piece on recent history of Quebec headgear debates, starting with efforts, under then Education Minister Marois to open up, and concluding with PM Marois’s current focus on the Charter, proposed reversing some of that opening.

Speaking the day after the head of the Quebec women’s federation was booed and heckled at a discussion at Université du Québec à Montréal, McAndrew said the debate is bringing out the worst in Quebec society. She added that it also might encourage teachers to dismiss any efforts to adapt to students of diverse ethnic backgrounds — in the way they teach their history course, for example — or accept different eating habits, or have patience with parents who haven’t mastered French.

“We are encouraging people to say OK we’re done with being open to different religions, but also to different cultures and languages, especially given the early ambiguity of the charter of ‘values’ before coming back to ‘laïcité’ (secularism) and the attitude that we must ‘put our pants on’ to deal with immigrants. …

“There’s so much tension and so much aggression,” McAndrew said. “It’s very worrisome. Will we feel it in the schools? I won’t say this is the end of our openness to pluralism, but we’re taking two steps backward for one step forward. And there are so many other things we should be working on in the schools for both the majority and the minority students.”

Education charter chill.

Filed under Charte des valeurs québécoise, Interculturalisme, Multiculturalism Tagged with , , ,

Signes religieux: Pauline Marois sur la défensive – and Other Charter Articles

2013/12/07 Leave a comment

Further to my earlier post (Question du voile: «On a plus urgent»), on the record of PQ ministers, and previous PQ governments favouring inclusion and openness on religious symbols (when PM Marois was education minister), fun to see lively debate in the Quebec legislature pointing out the contradictions with the approach in the charter.

And like so many politicians these days, she takes what I can only call the “stupid” approach of denying the shift, rather than being honest and having a discussion on why the change. Even if I don’t agree with the Charter, any good comms person or policy advisor to come up with a few talking points that would sound more credible than:

«Jamais, jamais, dans ce document (the 1988 policy document), nous ne parlons de signes ostensibles. Jamais, parce que, dans les faits, comme je suis très cohérente, ce n’était pas dans ce document, puisque dans la charte nous empêcherons qu’il y ait le port de signes religieux ostensibles, et cela va dans le sens du respect, de chacun et de tous et de toutes», a argué la première ministre.

The more the PQ speaks of coherence, the more incoherent it appears.

And the polls do not appear to show that the political gambit of the Charter has worked; the PLQ maintains a lead of 5 points over the PQ, which appears to have reached a plateau, and support for sovereignty is only 33 percent. Hearings on the Charter start mid-January for a period of two months, and we will see what impact they have.

Signes religieux: Pauline Marois sur la défensive | Martin Ouellet | Politique québécoise.

One of the Quebec nursing unions, La Fédération interprofessionnelle de la santé du Québec (FIQ), surveyed its members showing 60 percent supported the charter. In contrast, most hospitals and other health associations have come out against the charter, given the large number of employees that would be affected, and the impact on operations that would occur.

La FIQ appuie la Charte des valeurs | Hugo Pilon-Larose | Santé

But a number of the larger unions that are members of the FIQ, particularly two in Montreal, have dissociated themselves from this endorsement of the Charter:

Charte de la laïcité: d’importants syndicats se dissocient de la FIQ | Hugo Pilon-Larose | Politique québécoise

Filed under Charte des valeurs québécoise, Interculturalisme, Multiculturalism Tagged with , , ,

Nelson Mandela in his own words

2013/12/06 Leave a comment

Mandela

“On my last day I want to know that those who remain behind will say: ‘The man who lies here has done his duty for his country and his people.” – 1999

“What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that determines the significance of the life we lead.” – on the 90th birthday of Walter Sisulu, May 18, 2002

“The time for the healing of the wounds has come … the moment to bridge the chasms that divide us has come. The time to build is upon us.” – on his inauguration as president of South Africa, May 10, 1994

“For my own part I have made my choice. I will not leave South Africa, nor will I surrender. Only through hardship, sacrifice and militant action can freedom be won. The struggle is my life. I will continue fighting for freedom until the end of my days.” – African National Congress press statement, June 26, 1961

“No one is born hating another person because of the colour of his skin or his background or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite.” – from his 1994 autobiography Long Walk to Freedom

“Like slavery and apartheid, poverty is not natural. It is people who have made poverty and tolerated poverty, and it is people who will overcome it.” – on being named Amnesty International Ambassador of Conscience, 2006

“During my lifetime I have dedicated myself to this struggle of the African people. I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination.

“I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons will live together in harmony and with equal opportunities.

“It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to see realized. But, my lord, if needs be it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.” – speech at treason trial, April 20, 1964

“It will forever remain an indelible blight on human history that the apartheid crime ever occurred. Future generations will surely ask: What error was made that this system established itself in the wake of the adoption of a universal declaration of human rights?

“It will forever remain an accusation and a challenge to all men and women of conscience that it took as long as it has before all of us stood up to say ‘enough is enough.'” – to UN Special Committee against Apartheid, June 22, 1990

“I stand here before you not as a prophet but as a humble servant of you, the people. Your tireless and heroic sacrifices have made it possible for me to be here today. I therefore place the remaining years of my life in your hands.” – on release from prison, Feb. 11, 1990

Nelson Mandela in his own words – World – CBC News.

Filed under Multiculturalism Tagged with ,

Last day for 30% sale of paper version of my books

2013/12/05 Leave a comment

Reminder last day of Lulu’s pre-Christmas sale for my and other books. 30 percent off Policy Arrogance or Innocent Bias: Resetting Citizenship and Multiculturalism and Living with Cancer: A Journey.

Valid till midnight today. Promotion code is LULUVIP160199. 

Book shop link is Lulu – Policy Arrogance (also has link for Living with Cancer).

Filed under Citizenship, Multiculturalism, Public Policy Tagged with , ,

Counter-extremism is getting smarter

2013/12/05 Leave a comment

Commentary on the new UK counter-terrorism strategy, praising the broadening of focus to tackle extremism of all kinds, not just radical Islam, and ongoing serious effort to reduce anti-Muslim prejudice:

no counter-extremism strategy will unite us all. Such work lies at the notoriously fragile intersection that separates civil liberties from national security. But for the first time in a long while there are signs that we are moving in a better direction, and have acknowledged some failings in the past. While this week’s recommendations provide us with a foundation rather than a coherent strategy, they are a useful starting point for us all.

Counter-extremism is getting smarter | Matthew Goodwin | Comment is free | The Guardian.

And from the other side of the political spectrum, The Daily Mail takes this tack, which reads it into a broader critique of multiculturalism, defined in UK terms as promoting separateness:

David Cameron: Mistake of multiculturalism aided extremists | Mail Online

For the actual report, well-thought out and written as most UK strategies, link below:

Link to UK counter-extremism strategy

Filed under Hate crimes, Multiculturalism, Racism, Radicalization, Religion Tagged with , , ,

What is anti-Semitism? EU racism agency unable to define term

2013/12/05 1 Comment

Surprising (to me) as this work by the EU was fundamental to many in having a working definition of antisemitism over the past years, and the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) formally adopted this definition at the Toronto plenary meeting this fall (Working Definition).

The actual text adopted by IHRA, in contrast to the earlier version of the EU, kept a narrow definition of antisemitism, dropping any reference to linkages between antisemitism and anti-Isreali positions.

What is anti-Semitism? EU racism agency unable to define term | JPost | Israel News.

Filed under Antisemitism, Multiculturalism Tagged with , ,

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