The values the Dutch saw as the bedrock of their national identity – gay rights, gender equality – were unfortunately anathema to some of those who were now their neighbours. Many Muslims, for example, believed that women’s hair should be covered in public, but lived in a country where prostitutes stood naked behind red-lit windows without attracting a second glance. Newspapers reported cases such as that of a boy taken from his Turkish family by the Dutch authorities and placed in the care of lesbian foster parents, prompting vociferous protests from some in the Turkish community.
