Left Hanging: The Crucifix in the Classroom and the Continuing Need for Reform in Italy

Abstract

Increased immigration throughout Europe and expanding religious pluralism have exerted pressure on European States to make further accommodation for minority religious populations. This poses a challenge for Italy and other European States whose national identities are in-formed, at least in part, by a single religion. A recent decision by the European Court of Human Rights, holding that Italy could refuse parents’ requests to remove crucifixes from the walls of public school classrooms, has reinvigorated debate throughout Europe on the appropriate place of religion in the public arena. This Comment posits that in issuing this opinion, the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights has missed an opportunity to provide meaningful insight into the debate on how European States may confront the challenges posed by an increasingly religiously diverse society. As such, European States are left to deter-mine the policies and parameters of religious accommodation individually.