Part of my ministry involves working with children and young people in the church (probably a lot more than most Unitarian ministers, but that's a subject for another day). Recently we have been learning about Islam, and my conversations with our young people around this subject have given me cause for concern.
I've spoken to young people, assuming that they would know Muslims in their schools. I was expecting them to say, "Yes, X, Y and Z in my class are Muslim." But I've got none of that. It seems these children and youth are having no interaction with young Muslims. This kind of shocked me. I think of Bolton as being a similar sort of town to Walsall, where I grew up. And I had lots of interaction with people of other faiths and races at my school. More there than at any other time in my life to be honest. According to Wikipedia Bolton is slightly less diverse than Walsall, but still.
I'm beginning to wonder, how segregated are Bolton's schools?
I've spoken to young people, assuming that they would know Muslims in their schools. I was expecting them to say, "Yes, X, Y and Z in my class are Muslim." But I've got none of that. It seems these children and youth are having no interaction with young Muslims. This kind of shocked me. I think of Bolton as being a similar sort of town to Walsall, where I grew up. And I had lots of interaction with people of other faiths and races at my school. More there than at any other time in my life to be honest. According to Wikipedia Bolton is slightly less diverse than Walsall, but still.
I'm beginning to wonder, how segregated are Bolton's schools?
Comments
In turn Pakistani-originated families have retreated to the culture of their previous homeland (especially young British Pakistanis), whilst indigenous families taken part in 'white flight' from areas with high ethnic minority populations.
And let's be honest, many Unitarians have contributed to this in their relentless pursuit of the multi-culturalist ideal.
Rather than a dynamic melting pot (like that seen in the US - although not perfect), we have a patchwork quilt falling apart at the seams.
To flip the question, do the young people in your church and community know how many church-going Christians there are in their schools? I was in secondary school in the 90s (not too long ago!) and I wouldn't have known the answer.