Is the Secular State fair to Muslims?
June 20, 2007

Dr Laborde and Assistant Professor Sarah Bowen Savant.

On the 20th of June, AKU-ISMC was host to a lunch hour seminar by Dr Cécile Laborde, Reader in Political Theory at University College London. Dr Laborde spoke about the potential of a multicultural society within the secular state and provided an overview of her forthcoming book Critical Republicanism: Republican Theory, the Hijab Controversy and the Left.

Dr Laborde spoke about the 2004 'hijab controversy' in France, which was the result of a ban on all religious signs in French public schools. She explained her criticism of the ban and the three problems that the 'hijab controversy' raised: neutrality (is it fair to all members of society), autonomy (is the hijab representative of female oppression) and community (does it undermine French citizenship).

Dr Laborde has developed her argument within the normative tradition of political philosophy. This tradition concerns itself with the identification and evaluation of moral justification for political principles.

Citing American political philosopher John Rawls, Dr Laborde said that the main function of secularism is to treat people equally vis-à-vis the state. The state should not dictate what is good and evil or favour particular identities, cultures or religions. From this perspective, the secular state is at the heart of liberalism.

Dr Laborde defined two abstract republican positions that she criticised for different reasons. Official republicanism (those who supported the ban on hijab in French schools on the principle of strict secularism) promotes the idea of a non-religious public sphere, where equality is achieved through separation of Church and State, public and private. An alternative type of republicanism is tolerant republicanism, which recognises that in real society the public sphere is not neutral. This is because within what is considered to be the status quo there are traces of Establishment which are embedded within the existing political system and contemporary cultural norms. The idea of a neutral, secular state is therefore made more complicated - requiring not just an absence of religion, but an even handedness when dealing with religion in society.

Members of the audience included guests, faculty and staff of the Institute.

Dr Laborde was critical of both these perspectives, stating that, "Both official republicanism and tolerant republicanism suffer from the same problem - status quo neutrality - which refers to a position which fails to assess the legitimacy of the existing entitlements and privileges."

Speaking about the position of Muslims within the secular state, Dr Laborde noted the possibility of a double standard if the viewpoint of official or tolerant republicanism was to be applied. In this respect, she said, double standards exist because demands may be applied to Muslims that may not extend to others. However, she did not feel that the answer lay in simply extending the existing rights and privileges enjoyed by the historically dominant church to recently established minority religions. She explained that this perspective ignored whether or not the privileges enjoyed by the dominant religion are actually justified. An alternative perspective is that there could be a possible 'equalisation downwards,' or a removal of privileges from the majority.

Dr Laborde explained that where discrimination towards members of minority religions is evident an equalisation upwards or downwards is possible, depending on the circumstances. With regards to the wearing of religious symbols in French schools (i.e. the hijab), to deny students this right would be an unfair burden on the practice of their faith. In the same regard, Dr Laborde said that state funding for mosques should be allowed as even though churches currently cannot receive funding from the state, in the past this was practiced and has allowed the Catholic Church to consolidate the dominant position that it holds today. To not extend this privilege to minority faiths would be to deny them equal access to religion and thus be discriminatory.

In her book, Critical Republicanism: Republican Theory, the Hijab Controversy and the Left, Dr Laborde proposes a third form of secular government, critical republicanism, which has the potential to be fair to all parties within society.

From a critical republican position, the democratic state should be secular and show equal respect to all groups, including minority faiths, majority faiths and those of no faith. Dr Laborde explained that within this perspective it is important to not hold to status quo neutrality, which might negatively affect those not of the majority religion. Referring to the 'hijab controversy', Dr Laborde stated that where there is a potential for restriction of one's individual rights, free exercise must be possible so that religious beliefs are not unnecessarily burdened.

Dr Laborde spoke of the place of faith schools within the framework of secular governance, suggesting that state schools should accommodate those of all religious beliefs in order to foster an environment where children can grow and learn within an open-minded and culturally diverse community. From this perspective, state schools should be reformed so that they are more tolerant of minority groups. Inclusive state schools, which are composed of members of all parts of the community, are critical to the creation of a tolerant and diverse society.

In conclusion, Dr Laborde proposed that secularism should act as a guarantee of equality in society. In line with this view, the demands of Muslim minorities in Europe should therefore not be seen as a demand for special rights, but for equality. Most importantly, within a fair secular state, Muslims, like those of other faiths, should be able to follow their religion freely.

External Links*

• Dr Cécile Laborde's profile (University College London)

Online Resources**

• To download a complete transcript (pdf) of the seminar, please click here.

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