Submission

by Michel Houellebecq

“So their only chance is to adopt a two-track education system. They’ll probably model it on the polygamy agreement, which will maintain civil marriage as a union between two people, men or women, but will also recognize Muslim marriage—and ultimately polygamy—even though it isn’t administered by the state, and will come with the same benefits and tax exemptions.” “Are you sure? That sounds so drastic…” “Quite sure. It’s all been settled. And it is exactly in line with the theory of minority sharia, which the Muslim Brotherhood has always embraced. So they could do something similar with education. Public education would still be available to everyone—though with vastly reduced funding. The national budget would be slashed by two-thirds at least, and this time the teachers wouldn’t be able to stop it. In the current economic climate, any budget cut is bound to play well at the polls. At the same time we’d have a parallel system of Muslim charter schools. They’d have all the same accreditations as the public schools—with the difference that they could receive private funding. Obviously, the public schools would soon become second-class. Parents who cared at all about their children’s future would sign them up for a Muslim education.”