In mid-January, the British Communities Secretary Eric Pickles sent a letter to 1,000 Muslim leaders in Britain, asking them to "explain and demonstrate how faith in Islam can be part of British identity". The reaction was swift, with many Muslims expressing anger or dismay at what they saw as the insinuation that Islam is not part of Britain. By Susannah Tarbush
Sadly, that seems to be exactly what they are. How many times have we heard remarks like “Why do they get special treatment – we’re all one people, aren’t we?” Generally, those who make these remarks, motivated by seemingly sincere concern, truly believe they are not racist. But if asked what is it they are afraid of, they segue smoothly to the weather.
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Greg Billington has criticised National s Demand the Debate campaign. Collins seems to be not interested in preventing division. If she was, she would support media initiatives to help people understand the history of this country and why some aspects of that history created severe disadvantage for Maori.
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