Muslim request sparks more debate

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 06/02/2011 (5730 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

As Canada experiences increasing numbers of immigrants, the term “reasonable accommodation” is one that frequently comes up during discussions.

Generally speaking, reasonable accommodation is an adjustment in an existing system to adapt for an individual or group’s particular needs.

Those can be religious, academic or employment related. Many jurisdictions mandate them by law.

With regards to immigration, some recent examples of heated debates over how to accommodate some religious beliefs have involved allowing Sikhs to carry a ceremonial kirpan, or knife, and whether Muslim women should be allowed to cover their faces with veils at all times, including when registering to vote.

The discussion is decidedly more heated in Quebec, which has fought for generations to protect the French language and culture.

In 2007, a YMCA in Montreal frosted over their windows to shelter ultra-Orthodox Jews who had complained that youngsters had to watch women in gym attire from across the street.

Now in Winnipeg, a new debate has emerged.

A dozen Muslim families, who recently arrived in Canada, have told the Louis Riel School Division they want their children excused from compulsory elementary school music and co-ed physical education programs for religious and cultural reasons, the Winnipeg Free Press reports.

Ironically, a local Muslim leader says there is no reason for little kids to be held out of music or phys-ed classes on religious and cultural grounds.

“Who is advising them? My first concern would be, who are these new immigrants talking to?” said Shahina Siddiqui, executive director of the Islamic Social Services. “This is the first time I am hearing this — I’m not very happy about it.”

Manitoba Education Minister Nancy Allan has been briefed on the situation, because music and phys-ed are compulsory in elementary schools.

We will await her decision with interest.

The province has a requirement to reasonably accommodate such requests when the religious views are genuine.

We wonder who will decide what constitutes a “genuine” religious belief? But perhaps that is a topic for a future editorial.

However, school boards are expected to address such requests on an individual basis and within the parameters of the mandated curriculum, and the “accommodation provided may be reasonable even if not exactly as expected by the parent.”

We assume some accommodation will be reached in the Winnipeg case. As with most contentious issues, both sides should be willing to find a compromise (which is what the policy apparently hints at.)

But going forward, as immigration levels continue to rise as we plead for newcomers to fill our factories and bolster our economy, there will be an increasing amount of discussion over what exactly is reasonable accommodation.

We’ve just experienced three days of fantastic fun and friendship at the eighth annual Lieutenant Governor’s Winter Festival.

The annual event is designed to celebrate the heritage of all the cultures that make up Canada — from the First Nations, to the first settlers, to the latest groups to arrive on our shores.

It’s an event that federal Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney called “beautiful” as he toured pavilions Friday night.

But there is also a tough reality to Canada’s increasing multicultural nature, and it’s centred around two words — reasonable accommodation.

The most extreme sides of the debate will take the position that immigrants should assimilate into existing Canadian culture (whatever that is), while some newcomers might insist that they be allowed to practise all of their existing religious and cultural beliefs without question.

While we hope cooler heads and more moderate views will prevail, we don’t expect it will always be polite discourse.