The Camel's Nose

[Recusant]

In US, Christian theocracy has made advances in the past few years. The US Supreme Court is poised to rule in favor of elements of the agenda of the Christian god-botherers.

In Europe, those who would have religion take a more prominent place in public life are mostly Muslim. Both of these "religions of the book" stand against advances in human rights.

"'Growing enemies to French concept of secularism'" | BBC

There is a growing opposition to the French concept of state secularism or laïcité, the president of the Council of Elders for Secularism has said.

Dominique Schnapper, who advises the French government on secularism in education, told Hardtalk’s Stephen Sackur that some Muslim parents in France did not want their three, four or five-year-old daughters mixing with boys at school.

Some fathers stand outside the school courtyard where children are playing to check their daughter is not playing with boys, she explained.

“That’s an issue, that’s an issue for a democratic society whether there is laïcité or not, and we do not have to accept that,” she said.

Laïcité decrees that the public space - whether classrooms, workplaces or ministries - should be free of religion.

[Continues briefly . . .]

[Dark Lightning]

I studied French one summer for credit towards my B Sc degree. The professor was from France, and even 38 years ago when I took that class, he claimed that the principal religion in France was Islam, since most people were irreligious. It can only have gotten worse since then. I like the allusive title, btw.  You'll know it's gone all the way bad when the Muslims can enforce marriage only in a mosque. One other thing that the prof mentioned was that no matter what church you got married in, you had to go to a civil authority to make it official. The churches have no license issued, like we do in the US. I was amused when I got married, because my wife wanted a church wedding, and the license even said the the officiant was permitted by the government to perform marriages. 

[Recusant]

I found the story unsatisfying. As well, my take on it was facile and shallow.

The parallel doesn't actually work. In the US, the largest religious faction in the country is throwing its weight around. In France, a minority (albeit an important minority) religious faction is doing the same, but faces significant opposition.

Not to say that I'm sympathetic with Islam (to put it mildly), nor do I support any attempts by Muslims to impose their religious mores on secular institutions like public schools.  However, while the US Christians yalp about "religious discrimination," it's entirely a screen for their attempts to impose their will on the rest of society. The Muslims in France actually do face discrimination, and there is an undeniable intersection between vocal opponents of Islam and ethno-nationalists.

Though the article below has an agenda and is lengthy, it also provides a glimpse of the seedy side of the opposition to Islam and Muslims in France.

"France’s Demonization of Muslims Is Getting Worse" | Jacobin