Are Western Europeans fed up with Muslim immigration? JeSuisCharlie

January 8, 2015

by benign0

Is Europe now suffering from years of misguided (albeit, possibly in hindsight) immigration policy? It seems the notion is catching fire across the Continent. The outrage being exhibited by crowds that have gathered across European cities to express solidarity with the 12 people killed in a brutal Islamist attack on the office of French satire magazine Charlie Hebdo in Paris highlights the issue of free speech. But there are rumblings underneath. Even before this atrocity, right-wing parties espousing reduced tolerance for immigrants and highlighting the emerging apparent deep incompatibility between Muslim culture and the liberal secular societies of Western Europe have been gaining traction — and parliament seats.

People across Europe massing in solidarity against a growing Islamic threat to freedom of speech
(Photo posted by @ABC on Twitter)

The French have a long colourful tradition of satire, much of it expressed using cartoons and comics. France, however, is also home to Western Europe’s largest Muslim community and this cowardly act puts the entire community on notice. Many commentators are now seeing the swelling of Europe’s Muslim population as a threat to the social harmony prosperous Western societies had painstakingly built for centuries. Some have described the “massive” wave of immigration seen over the years as “mad”…

‘In the middle of the 20th century, there were virtually no Muslims in Western Europe,” Weekly Standard senior editor Christ Caldwell pointed out in his 2009 book on Islamic immigration, “Reflections on the Revolution in Europe.” “At the turn of the 21st, there were between 15 and 17 million Muslims in Western Europe, including 5 million in France, 4 million in Germany and 2 million in Britain.”

France in particular seems to be the country most fed up with this state of affairs…

“Only 19% of Europeans think immigration has been good for their countries,” Caldwell points out. “73% of French people think their country has too many immigrants … Even before September 11″ the French were “three times as likely to complain of ‘too many Arabs’ in the country than of too many of anyone else.”

And he quoted Princeton Islamic scholar Bernard Lewis, who in 2004 declared that Europe, by the end of the 21st century, “will be part of the Arabic west, of the Maghreb.”

The trend seems to be consistent with the objectives of radical Islamic movements like the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) which aims to re-establish a pan-Arabic caliphate in the mold last seen during their golden ages centuries ago. As such, whilst secular Western societies have embraced “multiculturalism” and naively expected all migrants to assimilate into the open societies they offered, it seems possible that the time has come to re-evaluate that thinking. Indeed, Islamic radicals residing in Western societies have leaned upon the guarantee of freedom of expression their adopted socities served to them and expressed their gratitude by spreading their virulent shut-the-fuck-up (STFU) philosophy, often (as is evident now) through violence.

The idea that Islamic radicals represent a small isolated sector of the larger community of Muslims worldwide is also wearing thin. Questions have been raised as to why moderate Muslim have consistently failed to more strongly denounce the activities of radicalised elements within their communities and police themselves more thoroughly.

Today’s deadly attack on Charlie Hebdo did not stop moderate French politicians from trying to downplay the atrocity as an “isolated” case. More likely, French leaders are now fearing an increase in support for the country’s rightist party Front National (FN). Its leader, Marine Le Pen has used strong words to condemn the attack and rally support for clearer resolve in French society…

“Time’s up for denial and hypocrisy,” Le Pen, who has railed against immigration, said in a video posted on her party’s website. “The absolute rejection of Islamic fundamentalism must be proclaimed loudly and clearly.”

Soumission (Submission), a book by top French provocateur Michel Houellebecq has also recently been published in an apparent timing coup. The book paints a hypothetical picture of France being taken over by Islamic politicians and policies favourable to Muslims being implemented including mandating the stoppage of education for girls after Year 11. The book and Houellebecq himself are, not surprisingly, making waves. The BBC asks, “[Is] Houellebecq simply doing the job of an artist: holding a mirror to the world, exaggerating perhaps but honestly telling the deeper truths?”

Interesting enough, the BBC further observes, “in Soumission, it is in order to keep Le Pen out [of power] that the mainstream parties rally behind the charismatic Mohammed Ben Abbes,” perhaps highlighting how political correctness and the denial of reality it creates in society may have contributed greatly to the crisis Western secular societies face today as they open their eyes to the elephant that has long taken up space in their proverbial room.