I tend to avoid social media these days, but someone referred me to a post on X from the OpenChiswick account, commenting on the dispute over Cycleway 9 and the Catholic Church in Chiswick, which ended with the words: “Never trust a Catholic.” As a Catholic, a former Chiswick councillor and a long-time member of this community, I find those words very offensive. People have every right to criticise the local parish’s position on Cycleway 9 or to disagree with any group involved in a local issue. But saying “Never trust a Catholic” is not a criticism of a policy or decision. It is an attack on people because of their religion. If someone posted “Never trust a Jew” or “Never trust a Muslim”, we would immediately recognise it as religious prejudice. “Never trust a Catholic” should not be treated any differently. This is especially important in a country with a long history of anti-Catholicism. In the past, Catholics in Britain were kept out of Parliament, public office, and many parts of public life just because of their faith. The belief that Catholics were disloyal or untrustworthy was a big part of that prejudice. By all means, argue passionately about Cycleway 9. Criticise the Church if you believe it has got something wrong. But attacking Catholics as a group crosses a very different line. There should be no place for religious prejudice in Chiswick’s public debate.

Entire Thread

Topic	Date Posted	Posted By
“Never trust a Catholic”	29/09/26 08:57:00	Peter Thompson
Church position on C9?	29/09/26 09:11:00	Michael Robinson
Re:Church position on C9?	29/09/26 10:52:00	Peter Thompson
Re:Re:Church position on C9?	29/09/26 11:11:00	Michael Robinson
Re:Re:Re:Church position on C9?	29/09/26 11:23:00	Michael Robinson

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