Religious Privilege and Intolerance: Unveiling the Rainbow Nation

Lee-Shae Salma Scharnick Udemans is a senior researcher in the Desmond Tutu Centre for Religion and Social Justice at the University of the Western Cape.

This article is adapted from the original chapter in the book, Ecumenical Encounters with Desmond Mpilo Tutu: Visions for Justice, Dignity, and Peace. The book honors the life and work of Desmond Tutu and was published as part of his 90th birthday celebration

The rainbow nation moniker as a symbol of peaceful and inclusive religious co-existence, lovingly coined by Tutu, during a time of great socio-political upheaval and hope obscures the uneven ways that religious freedom as the constitutional commitment to promote and protect religions and religious diversity, is experienced by individuals and communities [1]. While the latest French legislation that further augments already ignominious restrictions on the hijab for Muslim women has left feminists and human rights activists reeling, this essay illustrates that in South African where religious freedom is protected constitutionally and promoted discursively, there is a record of Muslim women’s sartorial choices being surveilled and scrutinized. Through exploring the notion of religious privilege and by drawing on two examples of institutional and individual attempted unveiling, this essay highlights the limited utility of rainbowism and constitutional religious freedom at the rock face of intolerance and exclusion.

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Religious Liberty: The Basis of a Free and Just Society

Elder D. Todd Christofferson is a Member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Introduction

I am grateful for this opportunity to address you. I’m honored to be here among so many who work so hard to build better societies, to lift people out of poverty and desperation, and to protect fundamental human rights. We are all seeking for a more just and free society where every person is valued and where each has a fair opportunity to flourish. Thank you for all you do in the service of that noble end.

I speak to you today as an apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ. In doing so, I affirm the eternal human dignity of each person as a beloved child of God. I affirm that each one of us has a divine nature and destiny. We are not merely cosmic accidents in a cold and uncaring universe. We are known and loved by an all-knowing and all-loving God.

I also affirm that each of us has the right to exercise moral agency—the right of choice to live our lives according to the truth as we understand it. Indeed, one of the primary purposes of government is to secure the freedom of all people to exercise moral agency.

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Panel: The Social Role of Religions and Faith Communities

Reyna I. Aburto is the Second Counselor in the General Presidency of the Relief Society of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

I would like to start by expressing my deep gratitude to all who have organized and participated in this inspiring event, and, particularly, to those who participated in this panel with me:

To Mr. Luis Panessi, from ADRA, the Argentinian Adventist Agency for Development and Support Resources, sponsored by the Seventh Day Adventist Church, whose objective is to “serve humanity in order to help everyone live according to God’s will,” as it is driven by justice, compassion, and love [1].

To Reverend Luis Mussiett, who is the National Evangelic Chaplain of Gendarmerie in Chile and who does remarkable work in “supporting, watching over and rehabilitating people who […] have been detained or whose freedom has been taken away” [2].

To Mrs. Cristina Tobias‐Nabi from IRUSA, Islamic Relief USA, who serves children, orphans, and women by providing, among other things, clean water, education, health services, emergency response, food, and microfinances [3].

I represent The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter‐day Saints, whose humanitarian arm, Latter‐day Saint Charities, has as a purpose to “relieve suffering, foster self‐reliance, and provide opportunities for service” [4].

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