Prayer in UK Schools: Multiculturalism and Liberal Tyranny with Lord Bikhu Parekh

This interview was conducted before the most recent verdict in the High Court rejecting the right of a student to conduct Muslim prayers in British schools.

Over the past few years there has been intense debate about the place of Muslim practice in liberal western societies. Across the west, partly because of the war on terror, politicians talk of unwelcome cultural shifts and the the need to chasten Islam in public life. In many European capitals, theres a debate about whether multiculturalism, a policy coined in the 1960s to integrate migrants, has had its day. Here in Britain, even many on the Labour left today blame the policy for allowing migrants to feel comfortable in their ‘ghettos’ whilst the right wing press talk of ‘no go areas’ and isolationist tendencies. This febrile environment has led to leaders like David Cameron to talk of a muscular liberalism. One that demands much more from those that have origins in other countries.

My guest today is Lord Bikhu Parekh. Bikhu is a champion of a pluralist society, one where liberal dogma makes way for genuine multiculturalism where communities engage in a conversation, embracing the possible cultural shifts that may come with that. Bikhu is the emeritus Professor of Philosophy at the University of Westminster and Hull, a distinguished scholar and prolific writer. Pertinent to today’s interview, he wrote ‘rethinking multiculturalism’.

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