Alright. So even going off of the higher estimates, that's about 123,900 Islamic terrorists worldwide.

So. 1.6 Billion Muslims, and 123,900 Muslim terrorists.

That means that 0.000077% of all the world's Muslims are terrorists.

If they all (God forbid) were in America, that would be almost half of one percent of our population.

 

There are barely enough Islamic terrorists in the world to build a small town. So, do we still think it's anything but xenophobic and Islamophobic to block all Muslims who are coming to America in desperate need of food and shelter?

 

 

 

Does it still make sense to turn someone away just because they're a Muslim? Does it still make sense to deport them, just because of their religion? Does it make sense to keep a registry of all Muslims and make them wear identification because of their religion? Does it make sense to bomb mosques, harass Muslim individuals, shame Muslim girls who wear Hijabs, make atrocious images like those shown above, or even just turn up our noses at the word "Islam"?

No! This paranoia of terrorists is rooted in our instinctual fear of people who are different from us. That is exactly the same mentality that fuels groups like the KKK and Arian Nations. Especially, it's what drives groups like ISIS and Al Quaeda and Al Shabaab and Boko Haram. 

Fearing people with different skin colors, religious beliefs, and cultural differences is arguably the root cause of all the world's most horrible tragedies.

The Holocaust.

The Crusades.

Slavery.

The genocide of millions of Native Americans.

Need I go on?

  

 

Let me tell you a little story.

  Once upon a time, I went to this itty bitty private Lutheran school. We wore uniforms, and had religion class every day. I started attending in fourth grade, and stayed until I graduated eighth grade and went on to public high school. Growing up in these religion classes, we were taught about Bible stories, some theology, some apologetics, and about how to talk about our faith. And in order to learn about how to discuss our faith, we had to talk about... ... ... ... ... *dramatic pause* ... ... Other religions! I know. It was scary.

But really- every time we mentioned another religion, we discussed it like it was some weird Aztec ritual and laughed at its absurdity.   Sometimes we rationalized other people's bad behaviour by saying that's what people can be like when they "don't worship the One True God." (Looking back, that sounds like something from a cult...) 

   By the time I was in sixth grade, "atheist" almost seemed like a swear word. "What? Who's an atheist? *gasp* They don't believe in God? That's so sad!" "LOL evolutionsists are SOO dumb." "Duh that should be national law. It's in the Bible." I couldn't even imagine someone who didn't believe in God. I didn't meet someone who was openly not-a-Christian until my freshman year of high school. So, can you imagine what a place like that thought of Islam? I was terrified of it! Really! I mean, atheists were one thing with their eternally-pesimistic views and constant raging about how much they hate the One True God, but Muslims? Oh, their religion advocated for the stoning of women! Beating of children! Murder of infadels! And worse, there were groups of especially evil Muslims that were out to destroy America! God, what could save us from this awful religion?

 

There's more to the story, but there are other pages dedicated to that. Long story short, I learned my lesson about being intolerant and stupid, and learned how to be a rational person, all without giving up on God. Yay!

 

See, people who grew up in traditionally Western homes, especially us middle-to-upper-class white Christian folk, have this knee-jerk reaction to things that contradict our own beliefs. Especially other religions, with particularly different customs. That's why it's so easy for us to rally around them as a common enemy. They're different. So they're scary. Just like the gays. And the Chinese. And the blacks. And the Indians. And the Mexicans. And the Native Americans. And the liberals. Need I continue? Well, I will anyway. Don't worry, I'm almost done.

 

Now, this part here is directed at the Christian folk out there. (Chill, I'm not about to bash your religion. That's what I'm against. Oh, and, I'm part of the same religion, too, so try to really hear me, okay?)

 

Imagine if you will, if it were Christian extremists who bombed Paris. Imagine if such atrocious things were done in the name of a God who we claim is loving and compassionate, enough so that he was crucified for our sake? That's heart-breaking. Now, imagine that in response to that, our politicians, our friends, the media, everyone was saying that Christianity is "like a cancer," (actual quote from a politician, not even exaggerating) and must be eradicated. Or that Christians shouldn't be allowed into the country. Or Christians should wear identification. And be kicked out of America. We would be furious at the persecution! And rightly so. We wouldn't hesitate to compare the behaviour of those people to Hitler. Because it really is ominously similar.

 

You might be inclined to argue that Christianity is different, that churches preach love and acceptance, and mosques preach Islamitization. Well... That's just not factual. Hateful Muslims are about as good a representation of Islam as the Westboro Baptist Church is  of Christianity. (If you don't know about the WBC and how crazy it is, click here to see their homepage.)

 

Al Quaeda hijacks planes, Christian extremists bomb Planned Parenthoods, the atheist Chinese government tries to ban religion... Every religion has those people who are not representative of the whole.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finally, my point. Why is Islamaphobia in America so beneficial to ISIS?

 

The answer is actually really simple. The message ISIS is preaching is that they will infiltrate and destroy America, and the West. They want us to be terrified of them. They use that fear as a tool to distract us, and to recruit. You've probably seen the news about Al Shabaab using a video of Trump to make some of their propoganda. If you haven't, well, Al Shabaab has used videos of Donald Trump to make some of their recruitment propoganda.

 

Not only that, but imagine yourself in the shoes of a young Muslim. You've grown up having to defend your religion-- you've had people right out ask you why your religion advocates for bombing innocent people. When you were a child, 9/11 happened, and you asked your parents if you should tell people you're not a Muslim anymore. Your siblings and children asked you the same question after the Paris attacks. Frontrunners for the highest office in the land are saying that people of your religion shouldn't be allowed in the country. If you're a woman, you're afraid to wear your hijab in public. You're afraid to go to your mosque for fear of harrassment or even your safety. You're afraid that someone will bomb your local mosque, just like the Parisian mosque that was bombed just weeks ago. Your friends have alienated you. You feel completely alone.

Then, this group comes along promising safety and acceptance. ISIS, Al Shabaab, Al Quaeda, whoever, is telling you that they would never belittle you or harm you the way the American government is. They tell you that this is where America is headed; that it will soon be a nation bent on oppressing and eradicating Islam, and it must be stopped. They say that if you fight for them, you and your family will be taken care of. If you strap on a bomb vest and blow yourself up with a bunch of Americans, you'll go to an honoured place in Heaven and your family will live in honour and wealth because you had the courage to martyr yourself. Suddenly, they don't look as bad. Especially if you're young, in your teens or even early twenties; which is the time in people's lives where acceptance and love matter most. You're angry at America, and so are they. And they have a "solution."

 

If we can't learn to accept the Muslim community, and recognize that Islam is not a religion of terrorism, but rather a religion some have twisted to justify their own terrorism, then we're dooming ourselves. We'll have given ISIS all the power and members they need.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

TL;DR ~~

   Islamaphobia is alienating the Muslim community, encouraging Muslim youth and young adults to seek sympathy and acceptance in the arms of ISIS.