Religious symbolism - Hijab does not threaten our culture

AS THE recent RTÉ series on Cromwell reminded us, religious intolerance and persecution have left a deep and lasting impact, an all but indelible one really, on the way we view our world.

It may also have coloured our view of some of those who would wish to share it.

Religious division and oppression shaped the demographics of this country in a way few other forces could have. We, of nearly all societies, should remember the great injustices imposed on families for no reason other than the faith they chose to follow was not that of the dominant group of the day. The legacy of those ancient hatreds is a deep and resilient suspicion of religious zealotry or intolerance of any kind. We have seen far too much blood spilt over church-or-chapel divisions. As even the most recent manifestations of religious hatred — the Garvaghy Road stand-offs and children needing police protection to get to school in Belfast — begin to fade we face a new set of challenges brought by immigration.