Thirty one states have rejected the 10,000 people our President planned to welcome into our borders. In a 289-137 vote on Thursday, the House of Representatives approved a bill to make entry into the U.S. much more complicated for Syrian refugees -- our nation’s top security officials would have to personally approve the entry of incoming refugees to ensure that they are not a security threat.
Western hysteria after the Paris terrorist attacks last Friday caused U.S. government officials to take some serious action, and this is understandable. Unfortunately, their protection efforts are steered at the wrong people. One of the Paris assailants last Friday may have carried a fake refugee identification card, but that should not affect the safety opportunities for those actually needing refuge. It is illogical to blame those escaping violence themselves, and it is awful for us as a nation to further complicate the Syrian civilians’ effort to escape the violence plaguing their home.
The fact of the matter is that punishing those escaping the Syrian civil war is unfair. Yes, the majority of Syrian people are Sunni Muslim, and yes, ISIS is a Sunni Muslim extremist group whose headquarters are located in Syria. But most of the people rushing out of Syria are trying to escape the terrorism and violence they face at home. The majority are nonviolent people fleeing for the safety of their families. To exclude a entire population based on an extremist group solely because they are in the same territory is absurd. Moreover, it points to a bigger problem.
Since 9/11, the American people have treated the Islamic people with distrust and discrimination. We as a whole blame all Muslims for the work of extremist groups of the same religion. But the small percentage of Islamic extremists who revolt against the Western world are a false representation of the majority of the world’s Islamic people.
The Islamic religion promotes peacefulness and nonviolence. Islamic values include the sacredness of life, helping the needy, and living with kindness and tolerance. Within the religion of Islam there is generally a mantra of nonviolence. The majority of Syrian refugees are Muslim, and with 250,000 Syrians dead from the Syrian civil war, of course they are searching for new homes. These people deserve a safer place to live, and we should be welcoming them rather than slamming the door in their faces. There are almost two billion Muslims in the world, so why are we letting ISIS and past terrorism define the reputation of the rest of them? I am here to speak for the majority of Muslims: let us stop judging them as a whole for the violence caused by a few.
I am aware that there is a risk of terrorism, but I am also aware that there will always be this risk -- with or without Syrian refugee presence in my home. To the Syrians who wish to flee to the United States: I welcome you, as does my president. Sadly, more than half of our states and the House do not and have made this explicitly clear.
