The experience of the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, and subsequent rise of extremist violence in our country and around the world has pushed the issues of terrorism and homeland security to the forefront of political discourse. Increased fear of another terrorist attack has created a stronger opposition against immigration and a greater distrust in our society towards immigrants – especially from Middle Eastern countries.
This is probably the reason why despite our Church leaders consistently advocating for immigration reform and urging people to welcome refugees from conflict areas, almost half of Catholics supported the president’s temporary ban on refugees from Muslim countries last February, and (according to Public Religion Research Institute’s recent polls) 41 percent of all white Catholics believe immigrants pose a serious threat to American society. Yet, it is our openness to immigration and our willingness to accept more refugees and integrate them into our society that can greatly help us mitigate the danger of violent extremism.
U.S. government statistics consistently show that, on average, immigrants have a significantly lower crime rate than native-born Americans. According to the Global Terrorism database, the overwhelming majority of Islamic Jihad terrorists since 2001 were homegrown and radicalized in America, half were born in this country, a quarter were converts to Islam, and none were ever admitted as refugees.
Furthermore, radical Islam accounts for only 26 percent of all terrorist attacks on U.S. soil over the past 16 years. The remaining 74 percent of terror acts with fatalities were committed by far-right extremists, many of whom claimed to have a connection to Christianity.
Although the overall number of deaths resulting from Muslim extremism and right-wing extremism is almost the same, the frequency of attacks by non-Muslim groups are on the rise. As the Combating Terrorism Center at West Point reports, violent attacks in the U.S. inspired by right-wing extremists went from an average of 70 attacks per year in the 1990s to 300 since 2001, and are likely to reach an even higher number this year. A 2015 survey revealed that U..S law enforcement officers consider anti-government extremists a more severe threat than radicalized Muslims. This unfortunate reality strongly suggests that we need to fear far-right extremism just as much, if not more than, radical Islam.
Right-wing extremists are individuals and groups who subscribe to white supremacy, racist and nationalist ideologies, and include organizations such as the National Alliance, Aryan Nations and the KKK, which according to the FBI continue to present a threat of domestic terrorism. Many of these neo-Nazi and white supremacy groups claim a Christian identity, and their public support has been rising in recent years not only in the United States, but also in other Western democracies. Over the past five years, nationalistic political parties with a racist and anti-immigrant agenda have enjoyed considerable electoral victories in Germany, Austria, Hungary, France, and the Netherlands at the regional and sometimes even national levels.
This unfortunate trend can only be countered by an increased effort to promote an ideology of acceptance and appreciation for cultural and ethnic variety, and to emphasize that multiculturalism and racial equality are an indispensable part of the Gospel. By standing up for immigration and acceptance of refugees, we have an opportunity to reinforce this message through our actions, and to break the dangerous ideological link between white supremacy and Christianity. Greater inflow of immigrants will inevitably increase ethnic diversity, reducing the appeal of right-wing extremism among an increasingly racially and ethnically diverse society. The multi-ethnic character of our communities and especially our churches could then be a powerful witness to the ideology of inclusion and tolerance.
Support for immigration also helps to reduce the chance of radicalization of Muslim citizens. Most Muslim extremists come from neglected and marginalized communities, who were not successfully integrated as equal members of American society. When the government takes a stance against the immigration from Middle Eastern countries and pursues a policy of banning Muslim immigrants, it sends a clearly negative message to Muslims already living here. It exacerbates their feelings of insecurity and inferiority, making it more difficult for them to cultivate and strengthen their American identity, and more likely to turn towards an alternative ideology of jihadist extremism. By promoting a culture of acceptance and integration, we can instead help American Muslims to become successful, productive and integrated members of American society.
An increased emphasis on promoting the culture of tolerance and welcome of all people regardless of their ethnic, racial or religious background can greatly reduce the threat of both Islamic and right-wing violent extremism.
This season’s spirit of welcoming the stranger is the perfect time for reflection on our support for immigrants, while recognizing that our country can be made safer from violent extremism not by rejecting immigration, but embracing it.
Dr. Kamila Valenta is a member of St. Gabriel Church in Charlotte and a part-time professor at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, where she teaches courses on ethnic conflict.