Group Identity and Individual Autonomy within Liberal Democracies: In Search of Guidelines

Excerpt As a result of the arrival of migrants and refugees over the last few years, most Western European societies have become multicultural societies. The conceptions of the good and the ways of life of ethnic minorities are sometimes at odds with the dominant ones, for example the so-called hijab-affair or the discussion within the Netherlands on the admissibility of female circumcision. Recently there has been significant coverage in the Dutch media concerning two other issues: the wearing of a turban by a Sikh in the Amstelhotel in Amsterdam in pursuance of his job as a cleaner and the debate in some of the quality papers of the Netherlands on the harmfulness of male circumcision