In June, news broke that the Education Committee of the New York City Council had approved two new Muslim holidays, Eid Ul-Fitr and Eid Ul-Adha, to be added to the school calendar.
On January 14, Bill Donohue testified before the very same committee requesting equal rights for Catholics: Jewish and Islamic religious symbols are displayed in the schools every December, but Christian symbols are banned.
With the exception of Councilman Tony Avella and a few others, the Education Committee showed no interest in appeasing Catholics. But its members are apparently capable of demonstrating great sensitivity to Muslims. Speaker Christine Quinn, who was raised Catholic—and who has shown no interest in the push for parity that we want—is now urging all city councilmen to vote for this new round of Muslim rights.
What’s at work is the politics of multiculturalism: tolerance for some, intolerance for others. But this fight isn’t over yet.
