Donald Trump is causing a stir once again for rather inflammatory remarks towards Muslim Americans that are frankly sickening. In a recent interview with Yahoo News, he said he was 'open to the idea' of having Muslims register in a database and/or carry ID cards professing their faith. As if this wasn't enough to make Adolf Hitler smile from beyond the grave, he also stated he was open to indiscriminate surveillance of Muslims Americans and warrantless searches of mosques. Where does the hatred end? And the terrifying part of all this is a startling percentage of people, almost entirely Conservative Americans, either commend these measures or merely shrug their shoulders. What's next, hauling Muslims off to internment camps? Extermination camps? These are not the sort of steps a freedom-loving democracy should take in the face of a global terror epidemic.
And it's not just 'the Trump' who's fanning the flames of hate. More than half of the country's governors have stated that they are not interested in taking in Syrian refugees following Daesh's attacks in Paris. Parallels have apparently been drawn between Muslim Americans and the growing threat of terror in the Middle East. Not only are refugees suspect of being potential terrorists but our very own American citizens are as well. Following the Japanese attacks on Pearl Harbor that sparked U.S. entry into WWII, Japanese-Americans were summarily rounded up and deposited in internment camps on the suspicion of being Japanese spies. What is this repetition of history going to teach Muslim Americans and refugees about the United States? Despite our vows of being welcoming of all creeds, colors, and faiths, do we really find Islam to be so un-American?
What's so dangerous about this way of thinking is that it breeds the mentality that Muslims are inherently different and inferior to (what is unspokenly implied) Christian Americans; and even more unspokenly white Americans. That is the rhetoric that this hate-breeding generates, and it is exactly what groups like Daesh want in response to their attacks. The disgusting notion is that these politicians are quick to call for airstrikes in the Middle East, and disregard the killing of civilians over there, and at the same time hide behind their prejudice in the name of protecting our own citizens. Only what they imagine to be the ideal American citizen will never wear a burqa or hijab, or carry the name Fatima or Abdullah.
I cannot think of a more un-American idea than to refuse refugees. At least in the America I envision, we do not wage war thousands of miles from our borders, only to refuse aid to the displaced civilians whose homes we've destroyed. Daesh is an outgrowth of the Anglo-American invasion of Iraq, and if people in Syria and Iraq are fleeing Daesh we should not turn our backs to them. The truly unforgivable notion in my eyes is to look upon Arab people as being suspect of terror simply because of their faith and ethnicity, when white Americans have used both for just that purpose for hundreds of years. If Conservatives are so worried about terrorism, then where are the Republican governors denouncing the rise in white supremacist groups in their states? When white Americans are the number one terror threat in the country statistically, why is there so much focus on Muslims being potential terror suspects? Aren't they suffering at the hands of Islamic militants in their own countries enough? Or have we conveniently forgotten that Daesh primarily target Muslim civilians? I guess we can let the neo-Nazis slide since they apparently represent the ideals of this country more accurately.
What new hatred will the fear-mongering right instill in the hearts of our own citizens? The map above is already enough to make me cringe. The fact is, there is already a terror epidemic in this country and it is home-grown. It has spread from the blood-soaked soil of the slave South to rear it's ugly head once again in this time of critical international peril when American compassion is needed most. We cannot succumb to hate. The world needs us to lead by example. To uphold the ideals that make our country a beacon of hope for the refugees we are told to fear.
I do respect your side of the argument, but some points I did not like. Have you seen the pictures of the refugees? Most of them are males... barely any women and children. I am not against the religion at all, I believe in equality of all religions. However I am against people using the religion to be terrorist and to use that as a way to get into a country or go under the radar. I think ISIS uses the religion negatively. Also I am from the South and I did not appreciate the comment at the end of your blog! Yes there are many different groups, but now you are categorizing the people from the South in different groups the way "Americans" categorize terrorist as Muslims! Very wrong! I am all for equality for all of us, but if you act the way of the stereotype then sorry to say you fit it. I think you should be more sensitive to all the people in the same way you want the hate to stop for "Muslim terrorist". Please if you want refugees, then welcome them into your own home.
ReplyDeleteI d not aim to generalize Southerners, only to draw a comparison between an unarguably dark time in American history with the current plight of domestic terrorism today. Half of my family is Southern, My grandmother was born on the Cherokee reservation in North Carolina and I have family in Maryland and Texas. I do not aim to generalize my own family.
DeleteGood blog post. "blood-soaked soil of the slave South" is outstanding hyperbole.
ReplyDeleteThis is a strong blog. I too do not like Trump and I too feel he is not helping the world, but rather encouraging discrimination and adding to the terrorist situation. Your points are strong and clear, such as your comparisons of Trump to people and acts of Hitler, so overall, I agree with your blog for the most part.
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