UK Study: Muslim Students More Tolerant Than Non-Muslims

“The Burnley Project: Evaluating the Contribution of Interfaith Dialogue to Community Cohesion” is a Home Office-funded study (August 2005 – July 2007) conducted by Lancaster University’s Department of Religious Studies, with a research team headed by Dr. Alan Billings and Dr. Andrew Holden. The study is funded in the wake of the Burnley riots.

In contradiction to reports of Muslim youth being vulnerable to terrorist recruitment tactics, the Burnley Project, whose findings are to be published  in April 2007 suggests that Muslim pupils in Lancashire are more moderate, forbearing, and tolerant than their white counterparts.  

In contradiction to reports of Muslim youth being vulnerable to terrorist recruitment tactics, the Burnley Project, whose findings are to be published this year, suggests that Muslim pupils in Lancashire are more moderate, forbearing, and tolerant than their white counterparts.

The principal aim of the study was to establish the extent to which interfaith dialogue and activities are able to bring segregated communities together in the governorate of Burnley as well as to highlight the types of initiatives that work best. Attention was also paid to which community leaders accurately represent the attitudes of their communities. The project also looked at young people at secondary level through to 30-year-olds to establish whether attitudes towards faith are changing between generations and to explore the potential for interfaith initiatives in the future.

The content of the report thus far represents a summary of some key findings at the halfway stage of the project, based on primary fieldwork carried out between October 2005 and June 2006. The content should be of interest to policy makers, public sector administrators, and those involved in the facilitation of interfaith initiatives.

A disturbing aspect of the study pointed out that almost a third of white pupils, compared to a tenth and a fifth in a school predominantly Asian and a mixed school respectively, believe that one particular race is superior to another.

The Social Setting

According to the 2001 census, 74.5 percent of people in Burnley described themselves as Christian and 6.6 percent as Muslim, signifying that religion plays an important part in concepts of self-identity even among those who do not regularly attend religious places of worship. The town is also home to a small number of Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs, and Jews. The report contextualizes as follows:

Like all areas of the UK, Burnley has seen a huge decline in church attendance since the 1950s. Not surprisingly, the interview data confirms that church going among younger generations has reached an all-time low in Burnley — a trend that is explicable by sociological analysis. The exception to this is a Pentecostal church, situated in the west of the town, that has managed to attract an increasing number of younger people to its Sunday evening service since the summer of 2005. … Mosque attendance is rather more evident, although this too is changing. While the number of midday Friday worshippers remains quite high in all nine mosques, attendance at other times is much more sporadic. The dearth of official mosque attendance data and the tendency of many Muslim women to worship at home, however, make any attempt to ascertain frequency of worship very difficult.

The study questions the popular notion that ethnic communities in Britain are ceasing to be concerned about integrating with their “new” culture and are instead strengthening their ties with the countries they originally emigrated from. In doing so, the study attempts to address this issue that revolves around mixing with others, by looking at the nature of extracurricular activities, attitudes towards race and ethnicity, views on faith-based cohesion and faith-based relations attached to place of origin, and more importantly, allegiance to common values.

Working closely with Building Bridges Burnley — an interfaith group of Muslims and Christians — over 400 15-year-olds were questioned about their attitudes towards race, religion, and cultural integration in the summer term of 2006. The pupils came from three non-religious schools, all in deprived areas: One school had mainly white pupils, one school had mainly Asian students, and the third school had a mixture.

Holden believes there is sufficient evidence from the school survey and from the other aspects of the project to support the claim that although the different faith and ethnic communities of Burnley manage to live amicably together most of the time, it is still largely a governorate in which social interaction between ethnic groups remains tenuous. This segregation manifests itself in housing, with the majority of the town’s Asian population concentrated in three of the most deprived wards. However, it is worth mentioning that an increasing number of initiatives have been launched since 2001 — including annual cultural events, neighborhood renewal schemes, urban regeneration programs, interfaith projects, and more recently the restructuring of secondary education — all of which possess the potential to improve integration within the town and to challenge some of the negative perceptions that the main faith and ethnic communities often hold of one another.

The Findings

Although the inquiry is yielding some interesting findings, it is important to note that the findings so far have been culled from the first of a two-year investigation. Holden found that most pupils at the mainly Muslim school were well-integrated and loyal to the UK.

“A significant and overwhelming majority were greatly in favor of moderate, democratic, and liberal ideals. Principles included tolerance of those with different views, being gracious to people from diverse religious and ethnic groups, freedom of speech, and respect for others.”

The report found that the higher levels of intolerance at the school with a majority white-pupil attendance were linked to widespread resentment among white residents, who felt that the local council had unfairly allocated extra funds to the Asian community.

“It is the increasing consequence of myths and stereotype, negative discernment of diversity, and apprehension towards change that educators, outreach workers, and educational support staff must make every effort to combat,” Holden said.

Gathering information from the questionnaires given to students from each school, we can establish the following information:

In School A (Exclusively white pupils from low-income families and high-crime areas):

• 19 percent of Year 10 believed in God.
• 16 percent had been exposed to religious influences by parents or other relatives.
• 8 percent attended church once a week.
• 45 percent said that home is the greatest influence on them, but friends are equally influential.
• 2 percent gave greater respect to faith leaders.
• 41 percent were able to name a member of the Christian clergy.
• 49 percent thought religion is unimportant or did not really care.
• 50 percent were willing to listen to other people’s religious views.
• 40 percent believed that Christianity and Islam taught how to be a good person.
• 30 percent believed that one race was superior to another.
• 29 percent were in favor of different faith communities working together.

In School B (Located in a more affluent area than School A, with 96 percent of pupils of Asian heritage):

• 97 percent of Year 10 believed in God.
• 96 percent had been exposed to religious influences by parents or other relatives.
• 81 percent had attended mosques at least once a week.
• 41 percent said that home is the greatest influence on them.
• 43 percent gave greater respect to faith leaders (though there is some contradictory results as to whether relatives are more influential than faith leaders).
• 68 percent were able to name a Muslim cleric.
• 10 percent thought religion is unimportant or did not care.
• 86 percent were willing to listen to other people’s religious views.
• 83 percent believed that Christianity and Islam taught how to be a good person.
• 11.3 percent believed that one race was superior to another.
• 76 percent were in favor of different faith communities working together.

In School C (Located in a similar area to School B with 73 percent of pupils white British and 27 percent of Asian heritage):

• 33 percent said that home is the greatest influence on them.
• 11 percent gave greater respect to faith leaders.
• 41 percent believed that Christianity and Islam taught how to be a good person.
• 18.5 percent believed that one race was superior to another.
• 34 percent were in favor of different faith communities working together.

Responses

“It does not surprise me that Muslim students are more tolerant as they are exposed to different cultures and religions from a young age,” said Shalina Hussein, a Child Protection Officer and freelance journalist from East London.

“For example, Muslim children may go to a Church of England primary school and learn about Christianity and other religions without compromising their own beliefs, yet attend mosques at the weekends to learn about Islam. This enables the children to learn about their own religion and other faiths leading to a tolerant and informed attitude towards religion.”

“Muslims are also encouraged to be active members of society and to work with their neighbors of whatever faith or race to create a safer and happier environment. It is very pleasing to read the findings of the survey as it goes a long way to proving that Muslims are tolerant and it is only a minority who is narrow minded,” concluded Shalina.

Cindy van den Bremen, a contextual designer and creative advisor from the Netherlands was pleased with the report.

“I’m glad to finally read some positive news and research concerning Muslims. Personally, I favor the mixed schools, or public schools as we call them in the Netherlands. I was a ‘product’ of a mixed school, together with my upbringing as a humanist made me the person who I am right now. I’m used to having friends from different backgrounds, cultures, and religions and have mixed couple friends in a bicultural marriage.”

References
The Burnley Project: Evaluating the Contribution to Community Cohesion.Last accessed on November 1, 2006.

source