As the Muslim presence in the West grows, so do the calls to do away with long-standing insignia that retain their Christian origins. This weblog entry keeps tab on some of the more colorful demands.
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St. Edward's Crown
A Muslim traffic warden, M'Hammed Azzaoui, resigned from London's Metropolitan Police Authority and threatened a racial discrimination case. He complained that the St. Edward's crown on a police badge — a symbol of the monarchy's authority since the eleventh century and the constitutional symbol of the political independence of the police — contains a tiny cross and, as a Muslim, he could not wear the symbol of another faith. In response, Deputy Commissioner Ian Blair proposed an alternative badge for Muslim officers and those of other religions. But Commissioner Sir John Stevens abandoned this plan after it got him an earful of protests. (Aug. 14, 2002) A Muslim provocateur, Adel Smith, a resident of Ofena, Italy, sued his son's public school to remove the crucifix in his classroom because it "bothered him." A district judge handed down a decision agreeing with Smith. "Public schools must be impartial regarding religious phenomena," he said. Italians responded with outrage. President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi called the crucifix "a symbol of the values that are at the base of our identity." (Oct. 30, 2003)
St. George's Cross
Chief Inspector of Prisons Anne Owers forbade British prison officers from wearing a St. George's Cross tie-pin, although it is the national flag of England, due to its connection to the Crusades. Chris Doyle, director of the Council for the Advancement of Arab-British Understanding, approved of the step, noting that "A lot of Muslims and Arabs view the Crusades as a bloody episode in our history," Doyle added that it was now time for England to find a new flag and a patron saint who is "not associated with our bloody past and one we can all identify with." (Oct. 4, 2005) Dec. 18, 2005 update: A reader responds: "Chris Doyle's claim is ahistorical gibberish. First, St. George was executed by the Roman Emperor Diocletian in 303 – rather limiting his opportunity to participate in the Crusades some eight hundred years later. Second, he was not English, but lived in Libya. Third, the cross belongs to St. George, not to England, so it is illogical to see it as tainted by the failings of England." To which I add: Doyle wants a patron saint "we can all identify with," but if he objects to a saint who lived centuries before Islam, which one will he accept? July 2, 2006 update: The Church of England will consider replacing St. George with St. Alban, a Christian martyr in Roman Britain at its General Synod, a move the Daily Mail says has met with "a cautious but sympathetic response from senior bishops."
An Islamic group in Australia, the Forum on Australia's Islamic Relations wants to do away with the word Christmas, holding that the term excludes too many people in a multicultural society. Its director, Kuranda Seyit, says it's time for Australia to fall in line with the UK, where councils renamed Christmas as Winterval and refer to it adjectively as festive and winter. (Dec. 4, 2005) July 11, 2007 update: Kuranda Seyit writes in to deny the accuracy of this report; see his statement at "Banning Christmas."
Muslims in Russia are demanding that the cross and other Orthodox Christian symbols be removed from the Russian coat of arms. Damir Mukhetdinov, deputy head of the Spiritual Board of the Nizhny Novgorod region's Muslims, said his people's feelings are insulted because "this violates the secular nature of the state and doesn't contribute to the unity of Russia's peoples." Ali Visam Bardvil, head of the Spiritual Board of Karelia's Muslims, noted that "The cross is not a Muslim symbol. We respect the religious feeling of Christians but do not recognize the crucifixion of Christ. Therefore, in my opinion Orthodox symbols should be removed from the coat of arms to make it acceptable to all religions." Nafigulla Ashirov, chairman of the Spiritual Board of Muslims of Asian Russia, went further. "This is not only a question of the Russian coat of arms. We can say that icons are all but put up on the walls of state offices," plus a host of other problems. (Dec. 6, 2005)
Inter Milan's new uniform.
Milan's leading obstetric hospital, the Mangiagalli, has decided to replace crucifixes with images of the Virgin Mary within the next few months as a way to please its growing number of Muslim patients, as "Maryam" is someone appreciated by Muslim women. Patients who want a crucifix hanging in their room, however, will receive on on request. Abdelhamid Shaari of The Viale Jenner Islamic centre welcomed the move. "This is certainly a sign of respect for our religion that we greatly appreciate. But a white wall would have been even better." (May 9, 2007)
A Turkish lawyer who specialises in European law, Barış Kaşka, was watching a Champions League match last month between Fenerbahçe and Inter Milan when he noted the Inter Milan team's new uniform that celebrates the teams centenary – a white shirt with large red cross on it. (A red cross on a white background is the symbol of Milan.) Kaşka sayes his "Muslim sensibilities" were offended by the "Crusader-style" cross, which he claims symbolizes "Western racist superiority over Islam." He lodged a complaint against the club, seeking not just damages for himself and a large fine for Inter Milan "for displaying an offensive symbol," but also to have the game annulled. (Inter Milan won 3-0.) And the cross taken off the uniform, of course. (Dec. 13, 2007)
The jersey that the "Eintracht Frankfurt" football team will be using, without a black cross on the front.
In a related development, the German football team "Eintracht Frankfurt" asked its fans to choose a new uniform for its 2008-09 season. The most popular of 16 designs turned out to be a white shirt with a black cross but, recalling the Inter Milan dispute (above), the team decided against the cross and instead chose the second most popular uniform (pictured), on the grounds that the cross represents a religious symbol. (Mar. 19, 2008)
The Swiss cross.
The next sports controversy concerns not the jerseys worn by players but the whistle carried by a soccer referee. Massimo Busacca, a Swiss referee, insists that he will use a whistle with the Swiss national symbol, a white cross on a red field during a championship game in Saudi Arabia today, despite local criticism. "I have respect for all religions, including Islam, but I don't see anything offensive in this and am optimistic. I will not give up my ‘crusader' whistle," he told Ash-Sharq al-Awsat.
Comment: It's a bit rich of the Saudis, whose national flag not only carries a bellicose religious statement ("There is no deity but God and Muhammad is his Messenger") but also a sword, to take offense at the Swiss flag. (Apr. 2, 2008)
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