SCHOOL FOR THOUGHT

Divide and Conquer

Well, I doubt I’ll win any popularity contests today, but that’s why they pay me the big bucks. I want to talk about whether the Muslims at Valley Park Middle School should be allowed to continue their three-year practice of praying in the cafeteria at lunch time.

Two different people (LDA and VH) have sent me a round-robin e-mail urging me to vote against this in a poll being conducted by CityNews Toronto (the poll box is located just under the video in the left-hand column). At press time, 65% of respondents thought that Muslim prayers should be allowed in school. According to the round robin, which has a very us-against-them feel, the poll is being swamped by Muslim voters.

Well, I just voted yes in the poll, and here’s why. I think that people’s anti-Muslim sentiments are hindering their ability to think clearly about this issue. I wonder what the same people’s reaction would be if First Nations parents asked to have regular sing-songs or healing circles at their children’s schools. Or if Christian parents wanted their kids to have religious instruction at their public school after hours (wait, this is already happening at Eden High School without any fuss). Or Catholic parents who want their kids to have religious instruction during school hours at their publicly-funded schools (wait….)

The point is - when schools come together as a community with shared values and goals, they just work better. This is one reason that Ontario’s publicly-funded Catholic schools are so much better than the province’s public schools. 

In my opinion, schools should be allowed to do anything lawful to build community and bring as many people as possible together as a team to work towards their mutual goals.