Morgan Hanna
On February 15 in Munich, Germany, two people were killed in a vehicular attack, including a 37-year-old woman and her two-year-old daughter. Over 30 people were wounded in the attack as well. A day later, on February 16 in Villach, Austria, a 14-year-old boy was stabbed to death, along with five others being wounded. What do these two attacks have in common? Why do they keep happening? How do these attacks, present and prior, affect European politics? In this article, we will answer all of these questions, and better understand the connection between the people of the world and their clashing cultures.
What Do These Attacks Have In Common?
According to BBC, the attack in Germany was carried out by a 24-year-old Afghan refugee, who is named locally as Farhad N. According to AP News, the attack in Austria was perpetrated by a 23-year-old Syrian refugee, who has not yet been identified. What connects these two events is the fact that both attackers are asylum seekers from the Middle East.
Why Does This Keep Happening?
Europe houses a multitude of refugees/asylum seekers coming from the Middle East, either in search of work, a safer place to raise a family, or other opportunities that Europe offers that parts of the Middle East may not. With them, the asylum seekers bring their own cultures into European nations, but there is room for conflict since the cultures, traditions, and common views of Middle Eastern and North African refugees are going to be wildly different from the cultures of European countries. For example, Afghanistan has very conservative views when it comes to the rights of women, while many European nations have more liberal views on the same issues. In order to avoid potential conflicts when it comes to differing cultures, some European nations have mandatory integration classes for asylum seekers. For example, Norway offers classes for male refugees on the cultural differences when it comes to the respect of women.
Of course, several sessions of cultural discussions aren’t going to change someone’s views. As someone who was born and raised in the United States, I have known nothing but racial, ethnical, and cultural diversity my whole life. Our nation is one of immigrants, but that is not always the case for Europe. The countries of Europe have much stronger racial and cultural homogeneity than the US, and even with a plethora of immigrants, there is still less ethnic and cultural diversity than in the States. Here in the US, immigrants have a much easier time integrating into society because of our nation’s history of diversity. Europe? Not so much, but they’re working on it. Immigrants in Europe may never feel welcomed in their new country, even if they reside for years. This can obviously lead to some resentment towards the people of your new home and new government.
How Do These Attacks Affect European Politics?
It’s no surprise that minority groups across the globe face more discrimination than majority groups of their respective region, such as the Romani people in Eastern Europe, the Uyghur people in Western China, and Middle Eastern refugees in Western Europe. There is an unfortunate effect of blaming an entire group of people for the actions of a single perpetrator. If we take the US as an example, have you ever gone onto social media and seen someone calling all undocumented immigrants murderers for the crime that one person committed? Or have you ever seen someone call every member of the transgender community a pedophile for the heinous actions of a single member? With the history of attacks in Europe, and the most recent two that we discussed, many Middle Eastern refugees worry for their safety as some people have begun blaming every refugee for the crimes of the few. As an example of this unfair backlash, back in December, three girls were stabbed to death and many more were wounded at a dance and yoga studio in the UK. The assailant, while born and raised in the UK, was the child of Rwandan immigrants. On top of his parent’s immigrant status, the attacker was in possession of an Al-Qaeda manual, which sparked rumors of the attacker being a Muslim asylum seeker. These rumors led to days of Islamophobic attacks on mosques by far-right extremists.
Attacks by immigrants and non-white-Europeans are perfect fodder for far-right politicians and their parties’ “tough on immigration” platforms. The issue is that any form of violence committed by immigrants and non-white-Europeans simply proves the points of far-right-parties. In the recent election in Germany, about 20% of the population voted in favor of the Alternative for Germany party, a right-wing party that prides itself on nativist and anti-immigration viewpoints, coming in second to the more moderate Christian Democratic Union party. With more conservative leadership, Germany and other European nations may close their borders to immigrants completely, or even deport those who are already living there.
If we strip away the socio-political impacts of immigration, that leaves us the economical aspects. With many Western nations facing low birth rates, the labor force needs to be strengthened in alternative ways. That’s where immigrants come in.. Here in the US, there is a new worry for the economy if mass deportations continue to take place. With a large percentage of our agricultural and construction industry being made up of immigrants, many are concerned with the future prices of produce and housing if the labor needs of the industries are not met. And the exact same could be said for Europe.
The issue of immigration is never a simple one, but once it lands itself in the world of politics, it tends to lose humanity. Some often forget that these are people we are talking about: p like you and me, making the best choice for themselves in order to secure their futures and protect their lives. This is not to say that immigrants, regardless of nationality and ethnicity, are unable to commit any crime. Humans are capable of beautiful and awful things, no matter their national status. But we cannot assume the worst of another human being simply because of their immigrant status, especially in times like these. If there is anything you should take away from this article, it’s this:
NO, the majority of our nation’s immigrants are NOT murderers and rapists.
NO, immigrants are NOT destroying our nation. Immigrant labor is extremely necessary in our country and the economy.
YES, there are immigrants, documented and undocumented, in our own community. Don’t know who they are? That’s fine, it’s not our business.
YES, immigrants are human.
YES,the immigrants of our nation and every other nation are deserving of the same care and compassion that you and I deserve.