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RELIGIOUS DISCRIMINATION & SECTARIANISM IN SCOTLAND: A BRIEF REVIEW OF EVIDENCE (2002-2004)

3. Social Perceptions, Attitudes and Behaviours

3.1 Steve Bruce and various colleagues have recently provided significant evidence to contribute to the debate on the extent to which sectarianism exists in Scotland today. This is largely through two studies. The most recent is the publication of a collation of evidence in a text entitled 'Sectarianism in Scotland' (Edinburgh University, 2004), as well as the analysis of survey data gathered through the Scottish Social Attitudes Survey in 2001. Each will be discussed below, with the main findings high lighted as appropriate.

Steve Bruce et al, 'Sectarianism in Scotland' ¹

3.2 The book opens with an attack on what it calls 'anecdotal' evidence to date which has fuelled a myth that Scotland is sectarian in its nature ². It also strongly criticises individuals such as James MacMillan, who it is claimed, further skew the debate on sectarianism and present an inaccurate and unhelpful picture to the public. With this background the authors claim that the text pulls together hard evidence about the prevalence of sectarianism, and in fact challenges the misconception that sectarianism was and is rife in modern Scotland.

Nineteenth Century- Early Twentieth Century.

3.3 The authors agree that there may have been disagreement over religion and nationality among Scottish Catholics and Irish Catholics; Irish Protestants and Irish Catholics; Scottish Protestants and Scottish Catholics; and Scottish Protestants and Irish Catholics, in the nineteenth century. However, they suggest that such disagreement was largely down to differences over belief in heaven and hell, and that it mainly manifested itself in caution over marriage partners. They suggest that it did not extend to discrimination in employment and such like. Many of the main employers in industry show no evidence that they did not employ Irish Catholics. Where there was any difficulty in gaining employment was due to the same difficulties that any migrant group would face- it was not because they were Catholic or Irish. It is claimed that any distrust did not evolve into large scale victimisation.

3.4 It is claimed that those voices that spoke out against Catholics (such as James Begg, John Hope and Jacob Primmer) were not given full support and were often criticised by their contemporaries. Historians who have used examples of these men to prove anti Catholicism was rife in Scotland, are accused of failing to look at widespread media (Scottish Guardian, Scotsman, Herald) and communities that condemned such attitudes. Where members got onto school boards on an anti Catholicism agenda, these were quickly moderated when in office. The authors also point out that when Catholic schools joined the state system, they benefited from keeping all their original terms of reference (in particular denominational guidance and observation), unlike other schools.

3.5 Bruce et al also warn against 'ghetto-ising' the Irish Catholic population in Scotland. They state this was not a homogeneous group and that there was a growth in the Irish Catholic middle class with people becoming teachers, doctors and policemen.

3.6 Although the authors acknowledge that there were negative attitudes about Catholics in the 1920 and 1930s, they claim that this was limited. Individuals such as Hugh Ferguson MP, John White (Church of Scotland), Alexander Ratcliffe (Scottish Protestant League) and John Cormack (Protestant Action Society) may have enjoyed a brief moment of popularity, but this was largely to do with issues around politics and economics rather than their stance on Catholics. Support later died away. It is also claimed that these individuals were campaigning against the failure of anti Catholicism rather than celebrating the success of such attitudes. It is also highlighted that the majority of clergy in Scotland urged tolerance of one another. No member of the clergy supported either the SPL or the PAS. Also, the authors highlight the fact that the British government deliberately gathered information to move against the racialism of Catholics.

Late Twentieth Century- Present Day.

3.7 When looking at discrimination in Scotland today, the authors note that older Catholic men are more likely to say discrimination exists against Catholics. Half of Catholics living in Scotland believe their religion makes a difference to how they are treated, and a third of other respondents share this view. However, only 1% report any experience of discrimination against them personally due to their religion. The authors suggest this shows the power of the myth of sectarianism. In reality they suggest that very few people experience any kind of discrimination because of their religion. From the 1980s onwards, it is suggested that Catholics no longer found discrimination on entering the workplace. Today, Catholics receive the same form of state protection in welfare, and there is no evidence to suggest that religious identity equals victimisation.

3.8 Furthermore, it is argued that the Catholic Church is very well respected- more so than some conservative Protestant groups. In looking at chaplaincy it is claimed that in the majority of cases where 2 chaplains work side by side, one is from the Church of Scotland and one is Catholic. This is said to be a large presence for a population that equals 16% of the Scottish population.

3.9 When looking at whether Catholics have a 'distinctive' identity, the following is claimed:

• Intermarriage is increasing with almost 50% of married Catholics marrying non Catholics.
• Catholics living in Scotland are more likely to say they are Scottish not British, as Protestants are more likely to say they are equally Scottish and British. There is no indication that Catholics in Scotland identify themselves primarily as Irish.
• 20% of those raised as Catholics now have 'no religion'.
• An increasing number of those identifying with Catholicism, feel the Church should comment on public issues but not private matters. This is possibly a move to secularism.

3.10 Other signs of tolerance in society include the backlash against those figures that are 'caught' airing sectarian attitudes and the decreasing membership of the Orange Lodge (estimated to be 50,000) in Scotland, compared to other countries.

Football and Violence in Scotland.

3.11 There is a perception that the majority of sectarian attitudes and behaviour is linked to football and associated street violence. Whilst the authors recognise some individual cases, in particular the murder of Mark Scott by Jason Campbell and Campbell's connections to the UVF and planned bombing attacks on Glasgow pubs, they suggest that this is the extreme and not the norm.

3.12 They openly criticise Kelly and Graham (2001) whose work suggests that recent years have seen up to 11 sectarian murders- the equivalent to 1.5 a year. On further inspection Bruce et al suggest that (based on Kelly and Graham's criteria) only 5 of those murders were actually sectarian. The authors suggest that the misrepresentation of these numbers in the original study, and the subsequent misrepresentations through reports by Nil by Mouth and the Church of Scotland have created a social panic over sectarianism.

3.13 Whilst the authors recognise that sectarian songs are sung at Old Firm matches, they claim this does not equate to sectarian attitudes. They argue that the average football supporter is young, male and from a working class background. The culture surrounding this group suggests that there is an appearance of aggressiveness that is not as severe as it might seem. The majority of the people who sing sectarian songs do so as a 'wind up' and do not mean the words they sing. In reality the people who sing these songs do so only to get at the team they are playing, and at the end of the day go home to their mixed marriages and mixed communities. They will often go to work the next day and talk to their Catholic or Protestant work colleague about the match.

Non-Threat of Sectarianism.

3.14 Mixed relationships and revised family dynamic (incorporating different faiths and no faiths) alongside other evidence shown earlier in the book is used to argue that bigotry has failed to grip Scotland. Whilst some individuals remain bigoted in their views, the majority have moved against this type of attitude or behaviour. The authors suggest that this is outstanding proof that sectarianism is not a threat to Scotland. They do not see their text as being the last word on the issue, but rather that their book starts to present the real picture and hard evidence, which others have lacked to date.

3.15 One final point that the authors raise is the question over what is allowed in a 'good society'. In other words, what does it mean to be sectarian? They caution that it should not be prejudiced to accept Irish Catholicism in various forms, whilst also choosing to disagree with some aspects of that tradition in favour of a Scottish Protestant background. It is suggested that it is more a question of tolerance whilst keeping one's own identity.

Scottish Social Attitudes Survey: Religion in Modern Scotland (2001 Analysis) ³

3.16 This additional module to the Scottish Social Attitudes Survey (SSAS) was funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), as part of a project to analyse various measures of religion and religiosity and their links to behaviour and political and sectarian attitudes. Steve Bruce and Tony Glendinning were the lead researchers. Although based on 2001 analysis this report was produced in 2003.

3.17 Specifically, the focus of this module was to look at:

• Links between religion, politics, ethnic identity and sectarian attitudes.
• How often people attended church
• To what extent people relate to conventional religion.
• Links between religious beliefs and sensitive moral issues.
• Other forms of spirituality other than conventional religion.

3.18 There were some interesting findings from this module. These fall under the broad topics of strength of organised religion, non attendance and belief, socio-moral issues, sectarianism and discrimination.

Religion and Attitudes in Scotland.

3.19 The researchers argue that Scotland is not a multi- faith society. Rather it claims it is a former Christian society that now has a large minority of active Christians within it. It is claimed that the largest group is now those of no faith, which has seen a rise of 50% in the last 25 years. ⁴ Of those that do not go to church, 38% had just stopped going to church, 28% had never attended church, and 11% had no religious upbringing. Of those that did not go to church, approximately 1 in 10 people still felt that they identified with the core beliefs of the church.

3.20 Of those who affiliate themselves to a particular faith, the majority are from the Church of Scotland, with the next highest group identifying themselves as Roman Catholic. There is then a significant drop to those from 'Other' Christian groups, and 'Other' non- Christian faith groups. One third of the respondents were over 55 years of age. One half of these respondents were in the Church of Scotland.

3.21 Although a large proportion of the overall sample said they 'believed in God' this was later tested and found to mean a much wider definition along the lines of 'something is there'. There was little evidence of taking up new age spirituality. Those that were interested in this area tended to see this as a form of alternative therapy or exercise. These were more likely to be popular among university educated women under 55.

3.22 Views on issues such as homosexuality and abortion were tested against religious affiliation. Overall 1 in 5 Scots hold conservative views on homosexuality and issues such as the 'Clause 28/ 2A'. Of those that are 'religious' the majority disagree with homosexual relations, although this is clearly more prominent in older groups. Only 25% of those aged 18- 34 thought that homosexuality was wrong, compared to 70% of those over 55 years. Similar findings were found when looking at Catholic responses to the issue of abortion. The authors suggest that this means that religion does not influence culture, except among some elements of the older generation.

Perceptions of Sectarianism in Scotland.

3.23 The survey shows that 1 in 2 Catholics perceive a level of discrimination in employment, although less than 1 in 5 actually report experiencing any discrimination in gaining employment or promotion. It is suggested that it is more likely that older men, from a Catholic background will perceive that they are discriminated against. This may be connected to poor access to education, as younger generations (which evidence suggests has access to education, and better educational attainment) are less likely to say this. Overall, few other respondents reported any form of discrimination.

3.24 Those with no religion are more likely to be in low skilled, low status jobs. They are followed by Catholics, and then Protestants. The order is reversed when looking at numbers in professional or managerial posts. However, this is again less pronounced in the younger generations.

3.25 Those that come from a Catholic background are more likely to live in a disadvantaged area, rent local authority housing and may 'find it difficult' on present household income. This is particularly true of older generations. The authors argue this may be due to living in former industrial heartlands of Scotland that are suffering poor socio-economic circumstances. However, they acknowledge that there appears to be a distinct 'class gap' between Catholics and Protestants living in urban south west Scotland.

3.26 Attitudes to mixed marriages were analysed to measure levels of discriminatory attitudes. 10% of respondents said they would mind slightly, or a great deal if a relative married outside of their 'faith' or denomination. The majority of these came from evangelical Christian groups or non Christian faiths. When looking specifically at Catholic and non Catholic marriages, it was found that approximately 50% of married Catholics aged 25- 34 were married to non Catholics. This is compared to 95% of those 65- 74 years and 85% of 55- 64 years being married to Catholics.

Other Reports on Sectarianism

Scottish Social Attitudes Survey: Attitudes to Discrimination (2003 Analysis) ⁵

3.27 This additional module, undertaken by Catherine Bromley and John Curtice, did not ask direct questions around religious intolerance. However, there were linked issues discussed around attitudes to discrimination. In particular the module focussed on women, disabled people, minority ethnic groups, gay and lesbian people and different forms of discrimination. This is relevant as people from minority ethnic groups can sometimes be doubly discriminated against because of their religious identity.

3.28 According to this research, 50% of Scots felt that all the groups experienced some discrimination. 1 in 10 said they thought the groups experienced a lot of discrimination. Younger, university educated women from urban areas, were most likely to share this view. Overall, Scots thought that minority ethnic groups and gay men and lesbians were most likely to face prejudice. 70% of Scots wanted to 'get rid of prejudice'.

3.29 In attempting to understand why people hold discriminatory views, the researchers looked at influencing factors, including sociological reasons. The authors looked to see how racial discrimination (link to religious discrimination) might be influenced by religion and church attendance. The table on the next page is taken from the report:

Table 3.1: Relationship between racial prejudice and 'sociological' factors

'Sectarianism in Glasgow'. (Glasgow City Council, 2003) ⁶

3.30 'Sectarianism in Glasgow' examines findings from research conducted for Glasgow City Council by NFO Social Research. Approximately 1000 people in Glasgow took part in either telephone interviews, focus groups and postal surveys. A number of interesting conclusions were raised.

3.31 Approximately two thirds of those interviewed disagreed that 'discrimination along sectarian lines no longer exists'. The same proportion disagreed that 'sectarianism is becoming a thing of the past'. The majority of those involved in the research felt that sectarian jokes, terms of abuse, vandalism, violence, threats, intimidation, and harassment are all common place in the Glasgow area. Overall, 59% of respondents felt that Catholics faced prejudice and 55% felt that Protestants faced prejudice. However, institutional sectarianism was perceived to be less common. Even so, 25% felt that discrimination occurred in employment decisions, and 20% felt that the police held sectarian views.

3.32 However, when analysing the self completion questionnaire, which allowed respondents to express attitudes and concerns about particular groups, very few expressed concern about Catholics and/ or Protestants. Other attitudes were raised including concerns about Muslims and asylum seekers and refugees in their neighbourhood.

3.33 Respondents were asked to report when they thought they had been discriminated against because of their religion. 1.1% felt that they had been turned down for a job or had received poor treatment at work because of their faith. Less than 1% felt that they had suffered a physical assault, threat of violence, vandalism, harassment, unfair treatment from the Council or other public service due to their faith. Yet, despite this apparent lack of 'reported' discrimination, 5% still said they avoided certain areas of Glasgow because of their religion. Whereas 6% said they avoided certain areas because of the football team they supported.

Opinion Polls

3.34 NFO System Three Social Research conducted a poll for BBC Radio Five Live which showed that 13% of people living in Scotland claimed to have experienced sectarian abuse of some sort. Catholics were 4 times more likely to be attacked than Protestants and 1 in 5 of all victims had been physically assaulted. This was conducted in May 2003

3.35 NFO System Three Social Research also conducted a poll on behalf of the Sunday Herald which showed that 47% of Scots would support a ban on all sectarian marches, 35% would oppose a ban and 19% said they did not know. This was conducted in July 2003.

Scottish Social Attitudes Survey: Islamophobia and Anglophobia (2003 Analysis) ⁷

3.36 Asifa Hussain and Bill Miller used a module in the 2003 SSAS to compliment a wider programme of work (funded by ESRC) on perceptions and attitudes connected to Islamophobia and Anglophobia. 1151 majority Scots were approached (this was defined as the general sample of the SSAS excluding those born outside Scotland, whose partner was born outside Scotland, who are not 'white' or who are Muslim).

3.37 In linked research, 12 focus groups and 1500 telephone interviews asked Pakistani Muslims (that were living in Scotland) and English born people (living in Scotland) how they felt their presence was perceived by majority Scots. These two groups are described as being the largest 'visible' and 'invisible' minorities in Scotland today. In order to view this against what perceptions and attitudes were held by majority Scots, the SSAS module was devised.

3.38 Both sets of findings will be discussed below, but it would be helpful to note the different sources.

Minorities Perception of Majority Attitude

3.39 48% of Muslims and 27% of English people living in Scotland think that majority Scots think that they are taking jobs, housing, healthcare and other forms of support from ordinary Scots. 60% Muslims and 48% of English people think that majority Scots feel they can never 'be fully committed to Scotland'. 81% Muslims and 78% of English people think that majority Scots think they will always be more loyal to other Muslims around the world/ England than Scotland.

3.40 56% of Muslims think that majority Scots would be unhappy if a relative married someone from their background. 25% of Muslims feel that Scots would be unhappy to work beside them.

Economic and Social Exclusion

3.41 Few Scots expressed any concern about economic factors in the SSAS, but a number of majority Scots did indicate that they doubted the minority's loyalty to Scotland. This was equal for both the English born and Pakistani Muslims now living in Scotland.

3.42 4% (compared to perceived 25%) of majority Scots would be unhappy to work side by side with a Muslim. 32% (compared to perceived 56%) of majority Scots would be unhappy if a relative married a Muslim.

3.43 5% of majority Scots would be unhappy if a relative married an English person. This is cited as a similar number to those that would be unhappy if their Protestant relative married a Catholic (or vice versa).However, 26% of majority Scots said they would be very happy to have a Muslim relative. 33% said they would be very happy to have an English relative. 44% said they would be very happy to have a relative from another denomination (Catholic/ Protestant).

3.44 The authors suggest that whilst the minorities recognise some elements of social exclusion, there may be some exaggeration in their perceptions of these specific issues.

Perceptions of Conflict

3.45 The minority groups and majority Scots were asked whether they perceived conflict between their two groups. Minorities and majority Scots were also asked whether they perceived conflict between Catholics and Protestants in Scotland. With the exception of Muslim and majority Scot conflict, this was to exclude anything connected to sport.

3.46 16% of the English felt that there was conflict between the English and majority Scots. 39% of Muslims felt there was conflict between Muslims and majority Scots. However, 93% of Muslims felt that conflict between Muslims and non Muslims was present around the world, 77% of Muslims felt there was similar conflict in England. Majority Scots largely agreed with this pattern.

3.47 43% of Muslims and 37% of English people felt that conflict between Catholics and Protestants in Scotland was serious. Most of the majority Scots believe that the sectarian conflict is more serious than the Muslim/ Scottish conflict or the English/ Scottish conflict. However, majority Scots view the English/ Scottish conflict more seriously than the English.

Being Scottish

3.48 Factors such as birthplace, parentage and race were investigated as to their perceived relevance in being a true Scot. 48% of English people living in Scotland believed that you need to be born in Scotland to be accepted as a true Scot. 36% felt that you needed to have Scottish parents. 14% felt that you had to be 'white'. Most of the Muslims did not agree with the English. Only 9% felt that parentage contributed to whether or not you were a true Scot. 20% felt that birthplace was relevant.

3.49 The majority Scots felt that birthplace was most important, with 64% citing this as whether or not you were a true Scot. 18% said that you had to be 'white'. 33% of majority Scots said they would deny a Scottish passport to anyone not truly Scottish.

3.50 Majority Scots were more apprehensive of a Muslim influx into Scotland (52%), than an English influx (42%). 55% of majority Scots felt that Muslims had 'not done a great deal to condemn terrorism' in the aftermath of 9/11. However, most of the majority Scots said they welcome a multi-cultural society, and that they would support any discrimination laws on race, religion or gender on a UK and sub UK origin. This would include any legislation to support Muslims and English in Scotland.

Correlations

3.51 The authors suggest that a number of factors influence Islamophobia and Anglophobia, and that there is some correlation between the two. They claim that both phobias 'go together', you are more likely to be biased against one group, if you are against the other. Lack of knowledge and lack of friendship between the groups will make this worse. Other influencing factors include age, gender and level of education.

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