Week 9: Religious accomodations Flashcards
Social Secularization
gov should remove religious influences in public sphere and even further it can take away religion in under all private sphere as well.
Arguments against religious social secularization
Seeing public symbols of religion can help with toleration.
Ability to practice your religion.
Justification for France disallowing the wearing of the hijab in public schools
The business of the education system is to produce secular citizens. Justification: the display of this kind of religious freedom is a violation of Frances secular nature, and a violation of women’s equality. Blocked them off from public and keeping them isolated to the private sphere pf the public. Threat to gender equality. Women’s autonomy.
There is no evidence to support this claim that these things are indeed problems.
Spinners view of Public/private secularization
does not to believe in public religious schools, but he recognizes that people should have that option. So he thinks we need to try to lure them into schools otherwise they will be forced underground. Fully outlawing it will not work well. So try to draw them into our system, like granting exceptions from certain public school shit: sex education. Gym class clothing. Arguably biology.
Spinner’s basis of argument
Bases his argument on the defence of autonomy. Autonomy means allowing people to live how they choose to.
He believes that the state does not look neutrally upon the decision to become a conservative liberal in the same way that parents and community shape and manipulate our choices.
In a liberal democracy it makes it difficult for people to support their individual identity.
There is also no reason to suggest that the individual communities must support autonomy if it is truly a liberal society., but society should educate people and allow them the ability to make this choice freely.
Some argue that conservative religious people would be parasitic to the remaining community but he objects because conservatives do not like their tax money going to things they don’t use and argue that they are double taxed since they pay for their own schools as well as public schools. Liberal state will also be more welcoming to religious moderates.
Rob Riech: Multicultural accommodation in education:
For secularization because it is a vehicle of transmission of culture from one generation to the next. Initiates children into the norms of society. Culturally centric curricula or separate schools.
They sometimes argue they are discriminated against for being taught principles contrary to their religion in public schools. Government gets control (FN boarding schools). They can shield children from social shit like racism and contrary social norms. By the state relinquishing or delegates control over the minority children schooling, it can undermine the freedom of equality of children. It happens in the same way that women’s rights are often subordinated when granting minority groups more freedom (family law in the case of Sikhs).
It often has negative effects on the weaker members in that community, like children.
Some believe that because people have a right to culture, the state must grant the status that might disregard the rights of individuals and their ability to exit. But he believes this to be a weak argument because it overrides our importance of individual freedom of choice and because it would be that liberals interest as well to then disregard their autonomy and freedom of choice in some circumstances even in liberal autonomous religions.
