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Jonathan Kay: Opposition to covered faces is not a sign of Islamophobia
Many of the survey questions pertained to the lone-wolf attacks in Quebec and Ottawa, which were conducted by murderous Muslim converts. The answers here were largely reassuring: A sizeable majority of Canadians see the Muslim community as a “partner” in the fight against terrorism — though an even larger majority also would like to see more Muslim leaders speak out vocally in opposition to religiously inspired violence.
Compared to a nun’s habit, the hijab therefore transmits a much broader, more socially conservative message about a woman’s role in the world.
The Angus Reid numbers on religious garb were even more interesting — since they allow for religion-by-religion comparisons. Seventy-three percent of respondents support the right of women to wear a hijab (head and neck covering, with the face exposed), 88% support a nun’s habit, 80% a Jewish man’s kippa, 86% a star of David pendant, and 89% a crucifix.
Those last two numbers are telling: If anti-Semitism truly were an acute problem in mainstream society (which I don’t believe is true), then one would not expect to observe a mere three-point difference between the approval rate on stars of David and crucifixes.
And even that tiny three-point blip may actually overstate the amount of anti-Jewish bias in Canada — because in the three largest Anglo-majority provinces (B.C., Alberta and Ontario), there is no statistically significant pro-crucifix bias at all. In fact, in Alberta — that supposed bastion of evangelical Christianity and small-mindedness — more people support the star of David than the crucifix (93% compared to 90%).
In Quebec, on the other hand, 81% support the crucifix, versus 71% the star of David. Both numbers are somewhat lower than anywhere else in the country — a symptom of that province’s fixation on secularism. But the 10-point gap between Jewish star and christian cross is hardly shocking: Many Quebec cultural nationalists (rightly) view the aesthetic trappings of christianity as part of their heritage. As Pauline Marois showed us during her brief and disastrous run as premier, the political expression of this view can be cranky and bigoted. But it typically does not rise to the level of “anti-Semitism” in the way that I would use that serious term.
It also is interesting to compare the national numbers on support for a woman’s right to wear a hijab (73%) versus a nun’s habit (88%), since the two forms of dress are, above the shoulders at least, aesthetically similar.
That 15-point difference between the two may be taken by some as a symptom of straight-out Islamophobia. But I would dispute that impression. Nuns comprise a small group of people who have committed their life to God through vows of chastity and poverty. The hijab, by contrast, is worn by all adult women in many Muslim societies. Compared to a habit, the hijab therefore transmits a much broader, more socially conservative message about a woman’s (and not just a nun’s) role in the world. So it is hardly surprising to see some statistical divergence between the habit-versus-hijab survey numbers.
Finally, we get to the numbers on the niqab — the near-complete Muslim female face covering that exposes only the eyes through a narrow slit.
Across Canada, only 27% support the niqab. (In Quebec, the number is 10%.) In the print edition of Wednesday’s National Post, this fact was reported under the headline “Islamophobia real, poll of Canadians finds.” But I’d say that opposition to the niqab has little to do with Islamophobia, and much to do with revulsion toward a genuinely creepy article of clothing that effectively walls a woman off from the society around her.
My own view is that Muslim women should be legally free to wear the niqab if they choose (though not in court, when voting, or when being photographed for government ID). But I also believe the practice is retrograde and profoundly off-putting. And the stigma of “Islamophobia” should not be attached to those who share this belief.
As the Angus Reid survey shows, Canada generally is a tolerant country. But the virtue of tolerance should not be applied so generously as to preclude criticism of backward, sexist, patriarchal cultural practices that present women as anonymous chattel.
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