A win for secularism and free speech

Imagine if, here in the United States, criticism of the Christian Right were a criminal offense. Imagine if anyone who objected to the Christian Right agenda or pointed out its true nature were immediately smeared as an extremist in the media, and if even one of the most popular and powerful politicians in America were to be arrested and charged with "hate speech", facing up to a year in prison, for merely voicing his opposition to the fundies.

Well, that's the situation that prevails in some European countries, where there is no First Amendment and the local equivalent of our Christian Right has weirdly achieved a sort of sacred-cow status with a sclerotic political and media establishment.

Islam is a small minority in western Europe, mostly imported by immigrants since World War II, but it has become an outspoken and sometimes dangerous force. In Europe, Islam is the main enemy of gay rights, the main source of attacks on secularism and women's equality, the main promulgator of hatred against Jews, and the main -- indeed, pretty much only -- advocate of teaching creationism in schools. Like the Christian Reconstructionists in the US, who want to impose Leviticus as the law of the land, some extremist Muslims have openly called for Europe to be Islamized and for Sharî'ah to be imposed there, in some of the world's most secular societies. More recently, assimilation has taken hold in most of Europe, with many Muslims becoming absorbed into the mainstream culture; but, as in the US, the religious-extremist sub-culture becomes more extreme as it shrinks, because it's the most committed and radical who remain.

As in the US, the rise of militant religion has provoked vigorous opposition. Prominent atheists such as Christopher Hitchens, Richard Dawkins, and Pat Condell have spoken out forcefully against the Islamists, in the same terms as they have against fundamentalist Christianity. In the Netherlands, the conflict has turned violent. Pim Fortuyn, a gay, Marxist professor, founded an anti-Islam party; he was murdered. Leftist film-maker Theo van Gogh, sometimes called the Michael Moore of Europe, made a film critical of Islam; he was murdered. Immigrant Muslim-turned- atheist Ayaan Hirsi Ali, after speaking out against Islam, was so hounded by threats that she had to flee to the US. (Bizarrely, such critics are routinely branded "far right" in the European media, though it's perfectly clear that Islam is the real "far right" in this situation. It's true that some genuine extreme-right figures and splinter parties have attached themselves to the anti-Islam cause, but if anything, they've harmed that cause by association.)

In Denmark as well, the publication of the famous Muhammad cartoons (mild compared with the mockery of Christianity which is routine on the US left), led to rioting and threats from Muslims, and later an attempt to murder a cartoonist. Europe's enfeebled Christian church leadership mostly sided with the Islamists, while many secular newspapers re-published the cartoons in solidarity.

Dutch politician Geert Wilders has emerged as the most prominent (surviving) critic of Islam in the Netherlands. He has denounced Islam as violent (a claim supported by numerous terrorist attacks and other killings, as well as by the sacred texts' endorsement of war and violence against unbelievers), called for a ban on Muslim immigration (far from unreasonable, given the results of earlier immigration), and compared the Koran to Mein Kampf (I've read both, and he has a point). For these statements, which in the US would be considered radical but protected free expression, he was put on trial for hate speech, with a maximum possible sentence of a year in prison. His trial has become widely seen as a test case of whether the Western values of secularism and free expression can still stand in Europe against religious totalitarianism.

Today the Western values won. Wilders was acquitted (reports from MSNBC, Radio Netherlands, and Der Speigel), with the court ruling that his words, while offensive to some, were a legitimate part of public debate.

In truth, Europe's taboo on criticizing Islam has been weakening for some time, and the secular resistance has been growing more assertive. Let's hope that the Wilders verdict emboldens others to speak out.

And, American readers, be very glad that we do have the First Amendment, so that you don't need to worry about being arrested and put on trial for criticizing a religion. We must fight to keep it that way.