Virtue, Freedom, and the Fight for Cultural Preservation in Italy
A new bill, proposed by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, seeks to ban burqas in public spaces, regulate foreign funding of mosques, impose harsher penalties for forced marriages, and curb Islamic teachings that contradict the Italian constitution and society's principles. And I fully support this bill.¹²³⁴⁵
Several people who know me well and who know that I advocate for small government and protection of individual freedom (including religious freedom), have asked me the excellent question of how I can support Italy's proposed bill to restrict religious freedom for Muslims.
Doesn’t that open the door to restrictions on religious freedoms for others, potentially even Christians? Doesn’t that violate a natural right rooted in natural law, of which I am a huge proponent?
The reason I support the bill is this: freedom is only compatible with individual virtue. America’s founders knew this and repeatedly warned that the republic they had created was only adequate for a virtuous and moral population. Without moral self-governance, freedoms would be lost by necessity.
John Adams said, “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.” Similarly, George Washington reminded us, “Virtue or morality is a necessary spring of popular government,” and James Madison acknowledged that “nothing less than the chains of despotism can restrain” a people lacking virtue.⁶⁷⁸
What these statements mean is that when citizens do not govern themselves morally, when virtue declines, the government must impose more laws and intrude more into private life to maintain order, decency, and safety. This is not ideal, but necessary, for the protection and welfare of all.
Italy's bill reflects this very principle. When Islamic ideology promotes values and actions deeply opposed to the ideals of liberty, equality, and human dignity, the government must intervene to protect its republic and its people. The less virtuous the population is on issues of moral governance, the stronger the legal framework must be.
Islam, as a political and religious ideology, calls for the slaughter of non-Muslims and “hypocrites.” It promotes sexual violence including the beating of disobedient wives, forced marriages of young girls to much older men, legalized prostitution, adultery and polygamy for men, and the silencing and covering of all women. Islam also supports lying and deception to advance its cause, resulting in societies devoid of common trust and common decency. These practices are absolutely incompatible with the values of a free republic and the rule of law.
Once Italy permitted the importation of about 3 million Muslims (about 5% of its total population), it was always going to be necessary to curb religious freedom. If the government doesn’t step in to limit the free practice of Islam right now, then Quran-obeying Muslims will ensure there is no free practice of any other religion before long. The intent of the proposed bill is to protect and defend Italian identity, the security of citizens, and women's freedom; Islam, by nature, violates all of these.⁹¹⁰
In defending basic human rights and religious freedom, it is essential not to allow that freedom to be used as a weapon against the free republic itself. That is why virtue and moral self-governance remain the cornerstone of liberty, and when virtue fails, laws and government must work harder to safeguard freedom for all.
Citations:
https://5pillarsuk.com/2025/10/11/italy-plans-to-impose-a-burqa-ban-and-other-islamophobic-laws/
https://iclg.com/news/23154-italy-to-criminalise-forced-marriages-under-new-draft-bill
https://brusselssignal.eu/2025/10/italian-government-wants-to-ban-burqas-and-niqabs/
https://mountlibertycollege.org/without-virtue-there-can-be-no-liberty/
https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/muslim-population-by-country
