Doubling down on the double secularism standard

Yeesh, so I used a Policy Options article by Mario Polèse as a springboard to critique the terrible idea that there are “two secularisms”. Other than making this very common mistake, Polèse’s article was not bad. But almost inevitably, someone took his “two secularisms” idea and ran with it.

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Once again, no, there are not “two secularisms”; there is secularism, and there is bigotry

Every time someone tries to defend religious accessories bans like Québec’s Bill 21, you can be assured of hearing the claim that there are “two views of secularism”, or some variant thereof. Basically, there is the English/American version that is more “tolerant” or “indulgent” of religion, and the French version that is “stricter”.

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Catholic schools can hire only Catholic teachers… but that doesn’t mean what you think it does

In a recent Weekly Update for Canadian Atheist, I made a throwaway comment about requiring teachers in public Catholic schools to actually be Catholic. It’s a very controversial topic, and my position on it is very nuanced, so I thought I’d expand on exactly where I stand on the issue.

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