You will not find church steeples in Muslim countries. No other religious symbol would ever be allowed to challenge the dominance of Islam. Minarets in western countries are meant as a statement of cultural challenge: They say in their own tangible and unavoidable way, “Islam is the religion you must literally look up to.” A landscape dotted with multiple replications of this message would create a psychologically intimidating atmosphere for non-Muslims. The Swiss were right to nip this thorny flower in the bud.
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Minarets aren’t the moral equivalent of church steeples.
They’re the moral equivalent of burning crosses.
