The Root of All Evil

(This contribution to the debate on religion in education was published in The Socialist on 27 01 2006 headlined "Scaring Children into Believing in Jesus")

Richard Dawkins two-part program on religion on Channel 4, “The Root of All Evil” has provoked a massive over-reaction from the religious right who show no sign of turning the other cheek and forgiving him.

Marxists support the right of people to practise their religion without imposing it on others, but that would include the right of scientists like Dawkins to put a contrary view.

Dawkins does not confine his strictures to the soft targets of Militant Islamic Fundamentalism. He draws attention to its mirror images on the fringes of Judaism and in the religious right in the United States.

“Hellhouse movies” as they are called are a new growth industry in the USA today. Graphically filmed, they quite literally “demonise” abortion and homosexuality with the explicit aim of scaring the viewers. Pastor Keenan Roberts explains that the aim is 'to leave an indelible impression on their lives that sin destroys and Jesus saves'. He is quite happy for children to have nightmares after watching because otherwise they might commit sins like homosexuality.

The result, says Dawkins, is a mindset which can justify the murder of a doctor like Dr. Barnett Slepian who carries out abortions on the grounds that he is destroying a being created in God's image! There are websites in the USA which openly advocate the murder of doctors who carry out abortions.

It is easy for a British audience to ridicule this kind of thing in the United States but the government’s proposals for education will include the takeover of swathes of the education service by organisations of the religious right. More than half of New Labour’s City Academies are to be run by far-right evangelists

Evolution will be out. The “one-sided cult of Darwin” will be replaced with a more rounded view in which the creation of the Earth in six days is taught as an equivalent theory.

Presumably the biblical view in 2 Chronicles, chapter 4 that Pi is equal to 3, will be given equal prominence with the godless Mathematical view which just happens to correspond with reality!

Physicist and Nobel prizewinner Stephen Weinberg describes religion as an insult to human dignity. 'Without it,' he says, 'you'd have good people doing good things and evil people doing evil things. But for good people to do evil things, it takes religion.'

Dawkins programs on Channel 4 are a valuable contribution to the debate and very timely in the light of the crusade against science being mounted by the religious right.

Growing anger at academies

SOME GOVERNMENT ministers fear that the new Education Bill to create a system of trust schools across the country could be defeated in the House of Commons.
But previous legislation that allows millionaires and private-sector companies to start academies, that are paid for by taxpayers but have no local education authority control, are already in operation. However, they are causing big opposition in some areas as the reports from Doncaster and Merton suggest


Doncaster

IN THORNE near Doncaster, the government gave £20 million to multi-millionaire evangelist Peter Vardy's Emmanuel School Foundation to take over secondary education. They built a state of the art school - on condition that they would have no interference from the education authority.
Mary Jackson, Doncaster

Trinity Academy opened in September but the discipline is so strict that already some parents have called a public protest meeting - 300 people turned up. I've never seen such an angry meeting.

Children were getting detentions for such things as wearing a 'regulation' black bobble in their hair but 'too loose', for being in the wrong corridor (it's a massive school) and for going to the toilet in a study period (in the sixth form!).

No-one is allowed to go to the toilet except at designated times, even during the lunch break once they have left the building. One pupil had to be sick in a wastebasket because even in emergencies the ban on using the toilet at certain times is absolute!

Parents waved bundles of detention reports that their children had received in the past four months. Some pupils who had never been in detention before were now getting at least one a week. One boy had his gym kit stolen, it was reported to the school - but he still got a detention because he didn't have it with him.

Many parents tried to discuss things with the school but no-one gets back to them. The parents who instigated the meeting contacted the education authority for help, only to be told it's nothing to do with them now.

The meeting overwhelmingly decided to campaign to stop the bullying and intimidation that their children are subjected to.

A few people supported the school, one a teacher there and a parent who proudly announced that her son was in detention every session last term but he has 'only had two detentions this year' (we're only in the second week of term) so it must be working!

The headmaster commented: "if the parents don't like it they can take me on." We intend to. We're starting by leafleting for a public meeting at Moorends Hotel on 25 January at 6pm and later we may organise a march and rally if necessary.


Merton

MERTON'S NEW Labour council are trying to stifle democracy over their decision to turn two newly modernised schools in the borough into academies.
Rob McDonald, Southwark

The Campaign against Academies in Merton (CAAM) is concerned that the normal consultation period has been cut to five weeks; and that the school meetings being organised will be the first time many parents would have heard of the proposals.

Many Mitcham Vale parents will be angry at the plan to make their school a Church of England school. Tamworth Manor parents will be angry at the proposals giving Tory Lord Harris the right to steal their school.

Results have significantly increased recently at the school. The council puts forward the propaganda that it's failing so they can push through their programme.

CAAM has produced a booklet arguing the case against academies in Merton (download at http://campaignagainstacademiesinmerton.t83.net). We have linked up with local unions and other campaign groups.

We will call for a massive NO vote in the consultation and ask people to join our lobby of the consultation meeting at the civic centre on 9 February.

Secondary Students Punished for Protesting

ON the day of the greatest Trade Union protest in 25 years, 10 students from Ard scoil Ris Limerick joined the protest. A month on and they are now being punished for it. What is worse is even students that did as the principal asked (brought in a note the following week) are being punished...

Details of the story are on indymedia
http://www.indymedia.ie/newswire.php?story_id=73840

Teachers or students who want to protest can email
asroffice@eircom.net
and send a copy to
ComradeCian@eircom.net

Imagine what an impact it would make if some of the comrades on the National Exec supported these students. It would be very educational.

A suggested message follows but write your own:
The Principal,

Ardscoil Ris,

North Circular Road,

Limerick.




RE: The punishing of students for attending the Irish Ferries protest



Dear Ms. de Brun,

I am writing to register my admiration for the students at your school who
took part in the vital Trade Union protest against Irish Ferries slave
labour plans and the "race to the bottom" on the 9th of December last year.

I believe it is a fundamental democratic right of everyone to protest,
especially in cases as important as this one. The students that took part in
this protest, sacrificing part of their own education, should be commended
not punished. Considering the problem of apathy among different layers of
society, it should be the role of schools to encourage students developing
an interest in societal issues such as this.

I also believe that it would be hypocritical for a union member to punish a
student for taking part in this protest, given that the teacher's unions and
student's unions supported this protest. Also, considering the ASTI knew of
the plans for students to attend the various protests around the country,
and registered no complaint, it makes no sense that three students should
now be punished.

The reality is that the students taking part in this protest had extremely
valid reasons to miss some of their school time. After all, young workers
find themselves faced with a possible future of the slave labour wages that
Irish Ferries were imposing and young workers also find themselves working
for extremely low wages. I therefore strongly urge you to reconsider this
case and to recognise that this is an exceptional one, and consequently
cancel all punishments.

Tuition fees repel poor students

Tuition fees repel poor students

THE CAMPAIGNING group Socialist Students has consistently argued that tuition fees would deter people from studying. Now, a new study, following a number of polls, shows that the £3,000 a year top-up fees put off working-class and some middle-class students from higher education. A large number also plan to live at home and go to their local university due to debt fears.
Zena Awad

Previous studies showed drops in applications of 5% to13% but these latest findings, coming a week before the deadline for university applications, are expected to show a significant drop.

This counters the government's false argument that the new funding system would not put poorer students off because you only pay the fees once you earn a minimum annual salary of £15,000 and due to the new bursary scheme for poorer students. But by 'poorer', they mean students whose families' joint income is less than £15,000 a year! This means most working-class students won't get any bursary.

These same results show that universities are failing to sell their new bursary schemes; moreover 30% of bursary advisers don't even receive any information on universities' bursaries!

This government's new education 'reforms' are in reality an attack on free education and an attempt to force competition for funding between the universities. This is also to prepare the 'top' ones for privatisation and to compete on the international market, hence Russell Group Universities - the 'Top Universities' - are seeking to attract rich students and private funding.

This is creating a multi-tier education system where working-class and Black and Asian students are segregated into their local under-funded courses while places like Oxford become more white and middle class.

This drop in applications will pose a serious problem to most universities which are primarily funded according to their student membership. They will see immediate loss of funding for unrecruited students and will face reduced capacity the following year. This will add to the already escalating department closures, the shortages of facilities on campuses of poorer universities or particular courses, and hence job cuts for education workers.

Socialist Students campaigns on campuses and within National Union of Students to actively link up with education trade unions and launch mass joint action in defence of higher education. We also make links with other public-sector workers for trade unionists to defend jobs and services and fight for a decent future - a socialist future.

Omar Deghayes

 
Omar Deghayes' family still live in Brighton and there is a lot of support from the local community.

There is outrage that New Labour continue to support imprisonment without trial and torture at Guantanamo.

A copy of the leaflet is available here

British residents in Guantanamo Bay

I received this information from the Save Omar campaign.
It clashes with the RMT meeting but if Tony Benn can make both
perhaps other people can too.

NATIONAL DEMONSTRATION FOR THE BRITISH RESIDENTS IN GUANTÁNAMO BAY
BRING THEM HOME.
Sat Jan 21st,
Assemble 12 noon, Tothill St
(nr St James Park tube) map

Support the Hunger Strikers
Shut down all illegal prisons
March via Downing St to the American Embassy, Grovesnor Square
Speakers include Tony Benn and Anas Al-Tikriti (MAB)
Supporting Families of the British Residents in Guantánamo Bay
Coach tickets from Brighton £6/£4 (Jackie - 07796 478 421 for tickets)
For more details contact info@save-omar.org.uk