Sir, – “Why are religious schools seen as divisive but Irish language schools are not?” asks Breda O’Brien (Opinion, April 12th).
Irish is a language, which is a skill, and in a Gaelscoil is a neutral medium through which subjects are taught. Religions are belief systems which make mutually exclusive claims as to revealed truth. In Gaelscoil, children learn through Irish. Children who learn through Irish are not taught to believe things which contravene the laws of nature based on faith alone.
Irish is not one of the distinct protected grounds set out under our equality legislation. Religion is. There is no such thing as linguistic dogma, doctrine, revelation or heresy.
No Irish language organisation has a virtual monopoly in the Irish primary school system. There is no constitutional right not to attend Irish in publicly funded schools. There is in respect of religious instruction, which I might add would still apply to all Catholic schools even if 50 per cent of existing Catholic schools were divested.
RM Block
No Irish language organisation teaches that non-Irish speakers will go to hell. No Irish language organisation teaches children that they were born with the stain of original sin.
No Irish language organisation discriminates against women or divorcees. No Irish grammar book has been used to justify genocide, ethnic cleansing, slavery or homophobia. There haven’t been any wars of language in Ireland or elsewhere.
O’Brien’s claim that “60 per cent of parents are happy with denominational education” is erroneous and misleading. In fact, it is 60 per cent of only those parents whose children attend religious schools who said that they are happy with them.
The results regarding parents of preschool children and parents whose children attend multidenominational schools have not yet been published, for some reason.
Finally, O’Brien complains that “Catholic schools are the only religious denomination that cannot give preference to students of their own faith. This is one of the blocks to divestment.” She appears to be arguing – without the slightest hint of irony – that Catholic schools are being discriminated against (presumably on religious grounds) because they cannot discriminate against children on religious grounds, whereas other publicly funded minority faith schools can. Perhaps the unfairness of religious discrimination is beginning to drop? Is a return to wholesale religious discrimination really the solution to a lesser degree of existing religious discrimination? – Yours, etc,
ROB SADLIER
Rathfarnham,
Dublin 16.
