While the blogosphere jumped on a British report which argues that multi-culturalism has driven an entire generation of young Muslims to radicalization, few noticed how some jurisdictions try very hard to pre-empt this phenomenon. A town in Quebec (!) passed a drastic motion seeking to preserve certain 'western values':

A rural Quebec town has taken the unusual step of formally declaring that it is forbidden to stone women in public — part of a list of “norms” that it says is aimed at potential immigrants.

Herouxville, about 165 kilometres northeast of Montreal, passed a document at a town council meeting this month that outlines what it considers to be its official behavioural norms.

The document, sent to both the provincial and federal governments, states that “a woman can. . . drive a car, sign cheques, dance, decide on her own.”

However, covering one's face other than on Halloween, burning women alive or burning them with acid is not considered acceptable.

Let's just say that its rural location helped in getting this motion in place, as I am not too sure it would have received a particular warm welcome in some of Quebec's urban centers.

UPDATE: Of course, a backlash against Herouxville's attempt to curb the excesses of multiculturalism is underway and when that happens the distinctions between 'race' and 'religion' blur almost instantly:

But some Muslim leaders have called the code a thinly-veiled example of xenophobia.

"Racism is coming out of the woodwork now, and it's not being obscure or subtle," said Salaam Elmenyawi of the Muslim Council of Montreal.

NOTE: If you have the time, you may want to consider reading the entire report about the British situation at the website of the think tank, Policy Exchange, here. Its lead author, Munira Mirza, has been featured on Peaktalk before.