Secularism and the safeguarding of liberal values
Posted: Tue, 23rd Jul 2024 by Stephen Evans
Stephen Evans highlights the myriad threats to secular liberalism and sets out what's needed to preserve it ahead of the NSS's upcoming conference on protecting liberal values.
It's easy to see how the idea of being saved by an act of "divine intervention" might well appeal to a narcissist like Donald Trump. But his claim that he had "God on his side" during the recent failed assassination attempt is more likely to be the sentiment of a grifter exploiting religion for political gain.
But sincere belief in the supernatural isn't necessary for Trump and his cronies to dismantle America's wall of separation between church and state. His nomination of conservative justices to the supreme court during his previous term of office paved the way for the overturning of Roe v Wade – a significant win for evangelicals. With a return to the White House looking distinctly possible, more laws to enforce the doctrines of his Christian support base could be on the cards.
The rise of Christian nationalism in the US is another indicator of a backsliding of secular liberal democratic values, the foundation upon which many successful modern societies are built.
Right across the world, wherever religion and political power are entwined, the chips are down for liberalism. Whether it's Protestant evangelicalism in the US, Hindu nationalism in India, or Islamism in the Middle East, the closer clerics are to governance, the lower the likelihood that individual rights and freedoms can flourish.
Europe, too, is facing testing times.
American Christian Right organisations are pouring millions of dollars into the continent to fuel campaigns aimed at diminishing the rights of women and sexual minorities. Christian identity politics has become intertwined with nationalist ideologies, shaping the political landscape and contributing to the growth of far-right movements across the continent.
Meanwhile, mass migration and a failure to integrate sizeable Muslim populations have contributed to the undermining and challenging of fundamental liberal values like free speech, equality and state neutrality.
One of secularism's most important roles in protecting liberal values is in preserving freedom of expression – making sure that individuals are free to voice their ideas, beliefs, criticisms and scorn of religious ideas without the threat of censorship or punishment.
Here in the UK, an incident at a Batley school starkly illustrated the erosion of this freedom. A teacher who used a cartoon of Muhammad to teach pupils about debates on free expression faced immediate and credible death threats and now must live under a new identity.
The writing has been on the wall ever since the Rushdie affair. But a spate of violent protests and murders across Europe since has sent the clear message to European citizens that, even if blasphemy laws have been abolished (and not all have been), they remain in place for Islam, and will be enforced by intimidation and violence.
Meanwhile, growing numbers of women and young girls on the continent are compelled to obey sexist religious modesty codes and thousands of children from minority backgrounds are attending illegal schools run by religious extremists.
Meaningful debates on these matters have become increasingly challenging due to the pervasive influence of 'Islamophobia', a term once noted by Christopher Hitchens as strategically employed to insinuate a "foul prejudice lurks behind any misgivings about Islam's infallible message". The language of Islamophobia has fostered a fear of being labelled 'racist' or bigoted, causing many liberals to refrain from criticising any manifestation of Islam, however worthy of disdain. This has created a void that is exploited by extremists on the far right.
Meanwhile, a crisis in confidence that secular liberalism can counter the ascendancy of radical Islam and 'wokery' has led some public intellectuals to be lured by the notion that Christianity is somehow indispensable in safeguarding the Western way of life. Daniel James Sharp and Matt Johnson have presented compelling critiques of this 'New Theism' and its defence of Christian privilege. But entrusting the preservation of liberal democracy to a belief one considers untrue yet expedient seems precarious at best.
All this is to say that the current climate for liberal values and human rights is challenging.
Amidst the ongoing threat posed by religious fundamentalism, a renewed embrace of the Enlightenment concept of separation of religion and state is sorely needed to safeguard individual rights and freedoms.
These are the issues we'll be addressing at Secularism 2024, the National Secular Society's upcoming conference on October 19th. A diverse range of expert speakers will shed light on some of the contemporary challenges faced by liberal societies and explore the role of secularism in protecting liberal values and social cohesion.
To be part of this important conversation about democracy, freedom of speech, individual rights, and the rule of law, join us at Secularism 2024. Tickets are on sale now.
Secularism 2024: Protecting Liberal Values
Saturday 19th October 2024 09:00 - 17:00 | Grand Connaught Rooms, Covent Garden, London