Sunday, February 13, 2005

Observation on Feb 13, 2005

As I read through the Howard County Times, there was an article on religious holidays and the school system. The issue was that the Muslims were demanding that the School Board not have exams during their holy days. The Superintendent stated that the system had a policy in place that no student would be penalized for honoring a religious holiday and that the administration was aware of this rule.

My immediate reaction was that the Muslims were overly sensitive and were trying to gain special treatment. My impression was that if this were a theocracy, similar to the Muslim Theocracies in the Arab Countries, a similar request by Christians would not even be heard much less have any chance of gaining consideration. Initially I was incensed. Then I stopped and thought that this was something which differentiates us from many of the "third World" and other countries.

By protecting their rights, we protect ours. No matter how much we object to the other and no matter that if the positions were reversed that they would not grant us similar consideration, we must grant equal protection to them if we expect it for ourselves. To do otherwise would betray the Constitution and the responsibilities placed upon us by the Framers of the Constitution.