My personal views differ quite a lot on this and I hope they don't get mixed up with what I've said above. Believing in a god is something I can tolerate in others. I think they have every right to do so if they wish. At the same time though I think it should be noted there is no evidence of god, you cannot prove he is real and theoretically the existence of god is unlikely. At the same time though I don't think believing in something you cant prove is a reasonable excuse to violate the human rights of others - in this case discriminating against others. I don't think anything is a reasonable excuse for discrimination. I think having a religious belief should not grant you legal privilege to violate others. Its definitely wrong in my eyes and if you were to have morals I don't think you would want too. For example if your god told you to dance and chant on a Wednesday morning whatever. But if they told you to violate the human rights of others it would not be ok and courts and governments should be able to intervene. Your breaking the law the way I see it. I think everyone will come around eventually but they will have see it for themselves but I guess something has to happen first which is a shame. For example in Germany a muslim woman filed for a fast track divorce from her husband because from the start of the marriage he repeatedly and seriously beat her as well as threatening to kill her. The judge said they came from a Morrocan culture where the Qur'an sanctions physical abuse so there was no reason to fast track the divorce. She pretty much said that it should have been expected. She was removed as a judge but now other women are too scared to come forward in a similar situations. I think its an unfortunate example why human rights should come before what is acceptable religiously. A religion is based on no evidence what so ever so people could do whatever they wanted in the name of it and claim impunity due to having faith. So overall I guess I think religion deserves respect but not so much that it negatively impacts other peoples lives. I think same sex marriages and civil partnerships are just a stepping stone to true equality in the future when the religious are told you can't live above the law so stop discriminating against these same sex couples or anyone else for that matter.
Voice For Victims
Voice for Victims is a campaign aimed at promoting the rights of those affected by child sexual abuse.
