British Debate Over Veils - Expressions of Opposition To The Raising of The Issue As A Public Debate

Expressions of Opposition To The Raising of The Issue As A Public Debate

• Ken Livingstone, then Mayor of London, said that he was "amazed by his insensitivity", adding that "bearing in mind this person has come to you to ask for something, the power imbalance in that relationship means it’s completely unacceptable behaviour on Jack Straw’s part. That a powerful man can say to a completely powerless woman, I think you should take your veil off, I think is completely and utterly wrong and insensitive."

• The Respect party urged Straw to resign. "Who does Jack Straw think he is to tell his female constituents that he would prefer they disrobe before they meet him," George Galloway said in a press release. "For that is what this amounts to. It is a male politician telling women to wear less."

• The Socialist Workers Party said that Straw's words allowed for an "open season for all who want to blame Muslims for the problems in Britain and to blame the victims of racism for the racism in society".

• Jon Cruddas, a Labour MP and another candidate for the post of Deputy Leader, suggested that ministers were playing "fast and loose" with religious tensions adding, "The solution does not lie in an ever more muscular bidding war among politicians to demonstrate who can be tougher on migrants, asylum-seekers and minorities. Nor is it in using racial or religious symbols to create controversy. That only makes the situation worse. It is not the role of politicians to play fast and loose with symbols of difference, especially when they drive the political centre of gravity to the right as a consequence."

• Writing in The Guardian, Madeleine Bunting claimed that Straw's "singling out" of Muslim women actually intensifies the division that Straw says he wants to remove.

• Rabbi Alex Chapper of the Ilford Federation Synagogue wrote that "I feel his comments were totally unacceptable and display, at best, insensitivity to, and at worst, an ignorance of the laws, customs and practices of Islam. It is nonsense to suggest that, 'women who wore veils made community relations more difficult', rather it is remarks such as these that create divisions and intolerance in Britain," adding "if you're going to single out for condemnation, or even ban, one style of dress where do you draw the line? Could the kipah or sheitel be next, are they divisive in Mr Straw's eye?."

• Daniel Hannan, prominent Conservative MEP and columnist for The Daily Telegraph, stated that "clothing ought not to be a matter for the courts." He also pointed out that other highly offensive pieces of clothing (to him) such as Adolf Hitler T-shirts, Che Guevara T-shirts, and Osama bin Laden T-shirts are inherently considered legal due to freedom of expression.

• Baroness Warsi, a Conservative peer who is serving as the first female Muslim Cabinet Minister in the history of Her Majesty's Government, has defended women's right to wear the burka. She has said, "Just because a woman wears the burka, it doesn't mean she can't engage in everyday life. If women don't have a choice they are oppressed." She has also said, "There are women who wear the burka who run successful internet businesses which don't require you there face to face."

• Minister of State for Immigration Damian Green has labeled a ban on face-coverings as "unBritish" and "undesirable" for a "tolerant and mutually respectful society" like the U.K.