And what does Sweden require?
The composition of Sweden's new government is "diverse" in the wildest sense of the word, but their first black minister -- a woman born in Burundi -- has been targeted by Muslims as intolerable.
“I am very disappointed that a person whom I consider to be an Islamaphobe has been appointed integration minister. It is a very poor start to a centre-right government’s integration policy,” [Muslim commentator and author Kurdo Baksi] said.
What has disappointed him? Nyamko Sabuni, a liberal in every known sense of the word, has brought her country's attention to the harms of female genital mutilation (and wants the practice punished), wants honour killings listed as such in statistics, and questions headscarves for girls under fifteen.
It is interesting that, although many Muslims insist that these are not intrinsic to Islam but simply tribal customs or traditions, to attack them is to be Islamophobic. Will he definitively defend the first two as important aspects of his faith that need to be transplanted to Sweden? She interprets her job -- helping folks integrate -- to mean that there are basic formulae for getting along, which the Muslim community is not signing on to. It's a legitimate goal that a duly elected government has a right to pursue. Most of Europe is struggling with this same question.
(It was also interesting to learn what a large African community is now living in Sweden.)
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