Political Correctness gone mad

while googling for organic/free-range halal meat I came across an article in the Daily Express that first slightly irritated me then made me laugh out loud....something about a well-meaning headmistress wanting the school christmas dinner to feature halal chicken, so as to be 'inclusive'. Also on the menu, I should point out, were 'sausage and bacon rolls' (or possibly sausage rolls and bacon?). Anyway, cue cries of outrage and 'pc gone mad' etc. etc. One outraged mother felt that "my religion and culture is being trampled on". So the school has to offer a non-halal main course option after all.

What made me laugh was the same mother fuming: "we bend over backwards at eid to eat THEIR food". I tried and tried to figure out what hardships or even inconveniences these brave people overcame in order to eat the sweet pastries or little snacky things that are usually on offer to non-muslims at eid. It couldn't be just reaching out your hand and lifting the food to your lips could it?

The article mentions concerns over the Halal/Kosher methods of slaughter which prohibit stunning the animal if that might kill it or otherwise affect the draining away of blood (the heart needs to be beating when the throat is cut).

There is more to halal meat than pronouncing God's name over it and draining the blood. We are told by the Prophet pbuh that the animal must be relaxed, if it is terrified you cannot slaughter it, you have to let it go. The life of the animal matters too, it is essential that the animal had a good quality of life and was treated humanely. For this reason I no longer regard chicken as halal if it is not also free-range. I don't think intensively reared chicken can ever be halal.