The problem with sloganeering is that it almost always absconds from nuance, and that’s especially true when talking about something as complicated as the varying differences between cultures. Despite that, the repetition of “diversity is our strength” has been constant in Europe and the United States among populations and politicians who lean to the left side of the aisle.
Yet, at some point, the question should be asked what that actually means in context and whether it’s universally true. Regarding that, I’m pretty sure Europe is currently learning the hard way that it’s not.
Here are some recent scenes from pro-Palestinian protests in the UK and Germany.
Now, a rational person might be asking exactly what causing violence and destruction in the country that took you in is accomplishing, but nothing in these videos is rational. This is the result of massive cultural differences which were not accounted for when Europe flung open its borders for years following the refugee crisis in the Middle East.
That’s not to say that refugees should never be allowed in, but there should certainly be a plan to assimilate them into Western ideals, right? That suggesting that is even controversial shows how dumb and self-deprecating societies have gotten over the last decade. Cultures are not inherently good and healthy, and what we’ve seen in the streets of Gaza, for example, is genocidal, not just a difference in viewpoint. Every culture should be judged on its own merits and precautions should be taken when necessary.
What we are seeing in Germany is especially scary as it harkens back to the abuse of Jews in the 1930s leading up to the Holocaust. Who is going to stand up and stop this? Because it doesn’t appear the leadership in that country is willing to do much of anything.
The often illiberal and sometimes murderous doctrines that refugees bring with them don’t just disappear from their consciousness the moment they cross into a first-world country. To assume that is to be incredibly short-sighted. Jews are being attacked on the streets in the United States as well because we’ve made many of the same mistakes. Western governments have treated refugees as an opportunity to virtue signal for elections instead of actually having systems set up to prevent what we are now seeing.
People are going to have to stand up and say enough is enough. That doesn’t mean there can be no immigration, but it does mean you can not be negligently stupid about it. A majority of Palestinians via polling data are rabidly anti-Semitic. Their leaders call for the genocide of the Jewish people. Brushing that off when it comes to dealing with the importing of these cultures is not compassion. It’s simply dangerously naive.