TEN YEARS after the first law barring religious discrimination
came into force, new forms of unfair treatment are being reported,
particularly by Christians, new research suggests.
Religion and Belief, Discrimination and Equality in England
and Wales: A decade of continuity and change highlights more
Christians reporting concerns about Sunday-working policies and
practices. Some Christians also articulated "a sense of the
marginalisation of Christianity compared with its historic position
in society, and spoke of what they felt was a now comparatively
fairer treatment of other religion or belief groups compared to
Christians".
The author of the report, Dr Paul Weller, Professor of
Inter-Religious Relations at the University of Derby, based his
findings on 500 responses to a survey of religious organisations in
England and Wales, in 2011. Interviews, focus groups, and workshops
were also conducted, while 130 relevant legal cases were
reviewed.
Professor Weller concluded that, since the 2003 Employment
Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations came into force, there
has been a reduction in the reported experi-ence of unfair
treatment on the basis of religion or belief, particularly in
criminal justice and employment.
The research highlighted "substantial levels" of such reports in
important areas of people's lives, however, particularly in
education, employment, and the media. This was generally occasional
rather than frequent, and more to do with the attitudes and
behaviour of individuals than with the policies or practices of
organisations.
Muslims and Pagans reported higher levels of unfair treatment
than other groups. Jewish organisations reported "significant
experience of anti-Semitism", including stereotyping and targeted
attacks on Jewish property.
Professor Weller cautions that "the introduction of new laws has
not been a panacea", pointing to "unresolved tensions in the
interpretation and application of domestic law".
Participants in the research preferred public education as the
means of tackling unfair treatment; there was not as much appetite
for new laws, in comparison with 2001.
Clothing ban. Students at Birmingham
Metropolitan College have criticised a policy that prohibits
clothing that conceals the face, in-cluding hoods, hats, caps, and
veils.
A prospective 17-year-old female Muslim student told the
Birmingham Mail: "I find it absolutely shocking that this
has been brought in at a college in Birmingham city centre when the
city is so multicultural and so many of the students are Muslim. It
upsets me that we are being discriminated against. I don't think my
niqab prevents me from studying or communicating with anyone - I've
never had any problems in the city before."
The Principal and chief executive of the college, Dame Christine
Braddock, said that the policy had been developed to keep students
safe: "This needs individuals to be easily identifiable at all
times when they are on college premises, and this includes the
removal of hoodies, hats, caps, and veils so that faces are
visible."
Interviews with students identi-fied mixed views of the
policy.