‘European nations must accept only Christian, secular migrants’ – ‘Cultural assimilation difficult’

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Although one should applaud the humane approach of some European governments and their compassion toward legitimate refugees and asylum seekers, however, it continues to be quite challenging to assimilate all migrants into the mainstream European culture.

For example, it is very difficult to expect the rapid success of any process of acculturation among some migrants without the willingness and full cooperation of the majority of those migrants.

In other words, you cannot for instance force someone to change their anti-feminist attitude, perhaps their entrenched biases against religious and racial minorities, in a relatively short period of time. Assimilating migrants into any European society requires continually teaching them about religious tolerance, a task almost impossible to accomplish within few weeks or months.

Being born and currently living in the Middle East in a relatively democratic society, I find it extremely difficult to imagine that some of those who come from certain parts of the region, known for their rampant religious bigotry, their racial discrimination and lack of cultural tolerance, would change their attitudes overnight.

On the one hand, the tendency among some already settled immigrant communities in Europe to isolate themselves from the culture and ethics of the host country is a vivid reminder that the same problem of integration might happen with the new arrivals. On the other hand, it might have been more appropriate for some European countries to accept only Christian and non- Muslim migrants, a very successful step already taken by Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

Claiming that West European societies are very different from East European societies ignores the fact that the basic fabric of all European cultures is fundamentally Christian, or at least semi-secular.

Moreover, it is important to remember that ISIS might have already infiltrated some asylum seekers. As a case in point, among some would-be legitimate migrants, it is often easier for them and perhaps more desired to acculturate to their host society’s attitudes towards politics and government, than it is to accept European attitudes toward religious faith, tolerance, and democratic values.

In order to achieve a positive adoption among new migrants of European civil behaviors and attitudes, there is a need to enroll them into a kind of crash course in cultural assimilation, followed preferably by a period of “cultural” probation, followed by immediate deportation of any asylum seeker who intentionally violates European laws, regulations and civic values. In the end, adhering to the values of apparently an ineffective project of multiculturalism, despite some indications of its failure among some already settled non-European immigrants, is almost similar to joining a cult of cultural suicide.

Twitter: @aljenfawi1969

By Khaled Aljenfawi

This news has been read 10938 times!