You will learn tolerance respect and understanding!

[Gob]

A Catholic schoolgirl has been branded a 'truant' by her teachers after she refused to dress as a Muslim for a school field trip to a mosque.

Staff had ordered 14-year-old Amy Owen and her classmates to dress in headscarf, wear trousers or leggings and keep her arms covered for the compulsory visit to the mosque after it was arranged to promote 'community cohesion.'

Parents at the 1,100 pupil Ellesmere Port Catholic High School in Ellesmere Port, Cheshire were also told they were each required to make a £3 contribution towards the trip for all Year Nine students.

But when Amy refused to dress in Muslim attire for the visit to Al Rahma Mosque in Toxteth, Liverpool, staff warned her about rules and said refusal would mean non attendance which would then be marked down as an 'unauthorised absence.'

In a stern letter to her family with words in block capitals and underlined, the school's headmaster Peter Lee said the visit was 'as compulsory as a geography field trip.'

He added: 'There are two reasons for these visits. One is that the scheme of work in religious studies REQUIRES children to have knowledge and understanding of other world religions.

'The second is that the school is REQUIRED to promote tolerance respect and understanding. This is known as community cohesion. A failure to do this could result in an unwelcome inspection judgement. None of us would relish that.

'Whilst I may not require you to pay for this I must require your child to participate.'

It is believed up to ten other families from Amy's Year 9 classes also refused to dress as Muslims and were marked down in the truanting register.

But Amy's mother Michelle Davies, 34, a home help said: 'It's like they're putting a gun to your head - either you go to a mosque, or you're marked down as an unauthorised absence on your record - that's it no two ways about it.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... z0nl7dNmR6

[Crackpot]

Nothing like promoting tolerance with an iron fist.

It occurs to me that you could get a better reaction minus the arm twisting.

[Gob]

Dear Muslim Parent

Your daughter is going on a school trip to the local Catholic church. We REQUIRE that your daughter dresses like a normal 15 year old British girl for this trip, and not in some medieval full length, face concealing, garb.

This REQUIREMENT is compulsory, as is her attendance and your paying for the trip.
Signed,
The Headmaster.

Not going to happen is it?

[The Hen]

Pretending to be something you are not does not promote tolerance. Living in a society where people can worship and dress how they want does promote tolerance.

By all means teach them, show them, test them. Just don't ask them to play dress ups. It demeans the whole point of tolerance.

[Sean]

Dear Muslim Parent

Your daughter is going on a school trip to the local Catholic church. We REQUIRE that your daughter dresses like a normal 15 year old British girl for this trip, and not in some medieval full length, face concealing, garb.

This REQUIREMENT is compulsory, as is her attendance and your paying for the trip.
Signed,
The Headmaster.

Not going to happen is it?

Can you imagine... "We REQUIRE your daughter to dress like a good catholic girl..."

[Crackpot]

As they're visiting a Mosque I don 't see an issue with a dress requirement. I do however have an issue with requiring the trip and forcing the action. THere are other places one can go to learn about Islam outside of Mosques. It seems what they had here was a chance to teach tolerance and reasonable accommodation and decided to brow beat everyone instead.

Par for the course with Catholics really

Sean

You wish Catholic girls dressed like that.

[The Hen]

I have no problems with the parents of participating students being told to ensure that their children dress appropriately. (As in covered limbs etc.) I just can't see that wearing a full costume is going to achieve anything.

[Crackpot]

I have no problems with the parents of participating students being told to ensure that their children dress appropriately. (As in covered limbs etc.) I just can't see that wearing a full costume is going to achieve anything.

I don't see "full costume" in the article.

[Sean]

Sean

You wish Catholic girls dressed like that.

She's wearing a crucifix isn't she?

[Crackpot]

actually? No.

[Sean]

Yes she is! It's a funky bejewelled one but it's there.

Jesus would've been happy to have been nailed up between Madonna's norks!

[Crackpot]

cross(es)

crucifix

I't just ain't a crucifix unless someone is nailed to it.

[The Hen]

I don't see "full costume" in the article.

True, they didn't say full costume. although they did require a headscarf. I wonder if they would have accepted a hoody?

[Crackpot]

I don't think a hoody would be appropriate catholic school attire,

I did get an interesting visual of Kenny attending a mosque tho

[Big RR]

I have no problems with the parents of participating students being told to ensure that their children dress appropriately. (As in covered limbs etc.) I just can't see that wearing a full costume is going to achieve anything.

I don't see "full costume" in the article.

I agree, this hardly seems like any sort of costume:

Staff had ordered 14-year-old Amy Owen and her classmates to dress in headscarf, wear trousers or leggings and keep her arms covered for the compulsory visit to the mosque

Indeed, i wonder if moslem women can wear pants to the mosque. I've been to Jewish synagogues for bar/bat mitzvahs many times and have always put on a yarmulke out of respect for their traditions--it never killed or harmed me. Likewise, covering ones head, arms, and legs out of respect to those in the mosque wouldn't kill her.

[rubato]

A Catholic schoolgirl has been branded a 'truant' by her teachers after she refused to dress as a Muslim for a school field trip to a mosque.

...

In a stern letter to her family with words in block capitals and underlined, the school's headmaster Peter Lee said the visit was 'as compulsory as a geography field trip.'
... "

Block capitals AND underlined.

My, they are strict. Next they'll be shunning.


yrs,
rubato

[Big RR]

You know, this i also pretty sad since the school and pupils are cathlic, a religion that routinely turns "inapproriately dressed" tourtists away from the Vatican. Are they making the tourists "dress like catholics" to enter?

[Sue U]

The article in the OP seems to be written for maximum inflammatory effect. As Crackpot and Big RR point out, no one is being required to "dress as a Muslim," whatever the hell that means. Is it too much for these people to show a minimum amount of respect for the decorum of others' religious institutions by wearing sleeves or bringing along a goddam jacket or sweater? If they were going to a Shinto shrine would they refuse to take off their shoes? What's the big fat hairy problem? I mean other than looking for a way to express their revolting anti-Muslim bigotry? If you're going on a field trip you have to dress appropriately for the destination; what is wrong with that? If they were visiting a coal mine or a construction site, would they refuse to wear a hard hat? These people are just being assholes.

[Big RR]

Ya think?

[Crackpot]

It sounds like there's assholes all around here. one side being blindly anti-muslim the other being blindly authoritarian.