A burkini ban was inevitable. Liberalism is not very liberal towards religious conservatives

I predict that within a decade, most Western countries will have banned the burqa – probably the niqab and maybe even the pretty burkini.

I’m against this. Of course I’m against this. It’s impractical and illiberal. More importantly, I’m a religious traditionalist – so I’m hardly likely to want to ban public expressions of religious identity. What next? Drive nuns off the beach too?

But my definition of liberty is not universally shared. It’s surprising how few understand that the “do whatever you want” concept of liberty is very Anglosphere, and limited even there.

Why do roughly two-thirds of Frenchmen want to ban the burkini? Because they’re engaged in a war on radical Islam that is being fought on two fronts: military and existential. The French feel – wrongly – that they are losing the security battle against terrorism. Who can blame them? Just over a month ago a fanatic drove a lorry down the Promenade des Anglais in Nice, killing 86 people. Conceding – rashly – that the Islamists have the upper hand when it comes to outrageous acts of violence, the French wish to score a victory in the existential battle over what it means to be French.

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Read also:  France is right to ban the burkini by Gavin Mortimer, Spectator