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School ‘holy days’ a threat to cohesion
• I AM a migrant and regret to say that the hypocrisy and double standards of immigrants escalate beyond belief every day.
Immigrants cannot say they came to Britain to live with the traditions and way of life they left behind (‘Close schools for Muslim holidays’, April 19). They came to live with the indigenous people, accepting the way of life and traditions of the host country. They came mostly of their own choice.
The majority of Muslims came here to avoid persecution and abuse of human rights in their country of origin by people of their own faith. Many came with their family and children. Many left their family back at home who joined later. They accepted the system and way of life, without the problems we see these days.
It is only recently that immigrants have demanded the closure of schools on their holy days. If the demands are met, it will create mayhem. There are immigrants of other faiths. They will also demand closure of schools on their holy days.
School closures for “holy days” will cause conflict, not only between the children of indigenous people and those of immigrants but also between immigrant communities.
There has been simmering discontent already over halal food in schools, the wearing of the veil, and sign boards and street names in Urdu, Chinese, Bengali and Arabic. This gradual build-up of discontent will lead to conflict of unimaginable proportion.
The national education system, which immigrants accepted for their children in the early days of their settling in the UK, has served our children well. That system had been shown as one of the greatest equalisers and had been promoting inclusiveness until the demands of immigrants who now want to introduce the system they left behind for a better life in the UK. What a volte face.
Community cohesion and promotion of inclusiveness will suffer if the faith-based demands of immigrants, like the closure of schools, are introduced in schools.
SUNIL KUMAR PAL
Abbey Road, NW8
• ONE of the more important functions of a school is to integrate and assimilate children of foreign nationals into the norms of British society.
Further concessions to the Muslim population of Camden by observing Eid as a school holiday would serve only to differentiate them from their peers and estrange them from the rest of society.
By contrast, consider the position of the Jewish community. For more than a century, Jewish children have been successfully assimilated into our schools, where their achievements have set standards for others.
However, of all the racial minorities in modern Britain, the one that most consistently over-performs is the Chinese. This is the consequence of the natural disposition of Chinese people to appreciate the value of scholarship.
It is not the result of giving extra holidays at Chinese New Year or observing Confucius’s birthday.
The achievements of the people who are now headed toward super-power status are something which British children (and the children of Bengalis and Somalis) would do well to emulate.
MAGNUS NIELSEN
Finchley Road, NW3
• THE call for schools to close on Eid will be a precedent for other faith groups to quite justifiably call for their holidays to be observed and for schools to close.
Religion can be practised privately and freely without these incessant and insidious demands for religious holidays and festivals.
For once, I am in agreement with Conservative councillor Andrew Mennear. Camden council taxpayers’ money is already being channelled through a community grant towards a mosque and Islamic centre.
CLEM ALFORD
Tavistock Place, WC1 |
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