SOC 202

Prof. R. Jackall

To what extent are Western European nations willing to bend their long established ideals to honor the
philosophy of multiculturalism in their societies?

Multiculturalism, an ideology first engendered in the Netherlands, basically refers to

sustaining racial, cultural, and ethnic diversity in a given nation. Responding to large
scale immigration of cultural minorities in the mid 20 th century, Western European
nations, believing that these immigrants would eventually return back home, espoused
the concept of multiculturalism, where the new settlers were encouraged to sustain their
cultures, languages, and traditions amidst a society very different to their own. However,
even when it became clear that the immigrants had no intention of going back, Western
European nations, especially the Netherlands and the UK, redoubled their efforts to
create in their societies a culture of respecting difference 1. Possibly they were driven by
moral considerations, or perhaps out of humanistic concerns in the wake of the
Holocaust, but it was at this precise moment that multiculturalism kicked off in Western
Europe.
Multiculturalism, from the margin, does indeed appear to be a noble endeavor for the
secular, tolerant Western nations. Multiculturalism encourages people to hold
differences between individuals and groups as a potential source of strength and
renewal rather than of strife. It values the diverse perspectives people develop and
maintain through varieties of experience and background stemming from racial, ethnic,
gender, sexual orientation and/or class differences in our society. It strives to uphold the
ideals of equality, equity and freedom 2. It also discourages homogeneity in society and
persuades one to be true to his nature or heritage and seek with others the same kind of
public recognition for one‟s collectivity 3.
However, for such ideal an undertaking, Western nations are now facing an unexpected
backlash. Aimed to stimulate natives to respect the difference of the immigrants‟
cultures to their own, and eventually to embrace diversity among people and culture as a
way of life, governments of Western Europe practiced policies which actually coaxed
immigrants to identify themselves with their own, different traditions and not to
assimilate themselves among the natives to forge a shared national culture and identity.
These very policies of fostering difference at the huge expense of shared national
identity are indeed to be blamed for a number “immigrant problems” that have been
plaguing the liberal Western societies since several years. Crimes committed by cultural
minorities, especially Muslims with non western backgrounds, are on the rise. Inhuman
practices, such as honor killings, female genital mutilation and the like not only exist,
but are proliferating, at the heart of Europe itself. Immigrants are actually worse off in
countries which heavily endorsed multiculturalism than in their non multicultural
counterparts1. And perhaps the most shocking outcome of multicultural societies is that
they are giving impetus to the radicalization of second or third generation of Muslims,
thereby sowing the seeds for home grown terrorism.
Legitimately, one does indeed wonder how an ideology intended at achieving a greater
measure of equality between cultures, not only encouraged even more segregation but
also brought about the radicalization of immigrant children who had been brought up
in European societies and educated in European schools. Even though Muslim
immigrants are brought up in European countries, despite their western education, they
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Prof. R. Jackall

share an identity and a culture very different from their native peers. In effect, they are
raised in their very own society, which believes in different traditions, has different
values, some of which are considered very outdated, impractical, even inhuman in the
West, and being a minority community, share strong bonds of affection. Rather than
embracing the culture of their host country, they are intent upon creating their own
mini-Morocco or mini-Turkey in countries like Netherlands and France4. Thus, even
when second and third generation Muslims are educated and raised in Western Europe,
they fail to assimilate culturally, primarily because of multiculturalism itself. This
eventually makes them even more alienated from European societies than their parents.
Upon this alienation, and humiliation resulting possibly from lower wages and living
standards, they resort to Islam for guidance. This leads to a vicious cycle, with every
generation becoming more and more embedded in their age old cocoon of traditions.
For example, in the UK, 62% of 16-24 year olds feel they have as much in common with
non-Muslims as Muslims, compared to 71% of 55+ year olds 5. Thus, as the immigrant
population grows, and the segregation of immigrants and natives increases,
economically and otherwise, the Muslim community delves more and more into Islam
as their source of identity and expression.
This cycle of marginalization and alienation of cultural minorities has resulted in stark
differences in how different cultural communities perceive the same actions, even
though they were brought up together. The spike in the number of rape charges in the
Scandinavia in recent years have been blamed largely on youths with Muslim immigrant
backgrounds. In 2001, two out of three charged with rape in Norway‟s capital were
immigrants with a non-western background. Norwegian women were victims in 80
percent of the cases6. The shocking reality is that in most of these cases, the parents
would not only back up their rapist children, but also would not even understand why
they were being arrested. Immigrant parents primarily blamed the conduct of their
children on the revealing outfits the Norwegian women were sporting rather than the
sick mentalities of their own children. Apparently their culture taught them that women,
of every other religion, who defame the values of Islamic womanhood, should be
“punished”. And at the heart of this crisis was the fact that the Norwegian government,
instead of educating the masses about the situation, was actually intent upon hiding this
“immigrant” problem.
That tolerance is the very founding philosophy of almost every Western European
nation is a fact that indeed cannot be debated. Yet this very tolerance, both at the level of
society as well at the national level, is being tested to the limits. Even when there is clear
correlation between gang rapes and immigrants with Muslim backgrounds, the
Scandinavian nations are yet to take a concrete step in curbing the grass-root causes of
this criminal debacle. A significant number of Muslim majority suburbs in the UK have
been declared as “no-go zones” for non-Muslims by an influential bishop7. A court in
Germany even went so far as to legitimize wife-beating on cultural grounds8. Yet almost
every society is at denial to accept that the core values of Western democracy,
particularly individual freedom are at extreme odds with Islamic values of the
supremacy of males, and that of family honor. Governments are willing to compromise
rule of law on the fear of being labeled xenophobic and racist. And to top it all, the
fiercely aggressive media has actually been cowed into submission by the constant death
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Prof. R. Jackall

threats and harassments journalists receive from extremist Muslims as a token for their
courageous act of delivering their findings to the world at large.
Muslim women, grown up and educated in European schools, are still being forced to
marry the grooms of their family‟s choice. Anyone who dares to become “European”, in
their attitude, religion and thought, are thought to have brought shame to their families.
Hatin Surucu‟s only crimes were that she did not succumb to forced marriage at the
tender age of 16, discarded her Islamic head scarf, enrolled in a technical school, and
dated German men. For this, she was punished with death, at the hands of her own kin 9.
Indeed, women do not still have the liberty to discard the veil even if they want to.
French Muslim women are still being gang raped for wearing any seemingly modern
attire10. Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a Dutch “infidel”11 parliamentarian has had to flee her country
because of imminent death threats she received because she denounced Islam. Theo Van
Gogh, a Dutch filmmaker, was brutally murdered in public by a second generation
Muslim immigrant, because he dared to criticize Islam‟s merciless treatment of women
12. Outdated and inhuman practices, like female genital mutilation, are still taking place

in France. The rare few parents who were actually tried in court and brought into public
limelight received only suspended prison terms, for the immensely grave crimes of their
own daughters‟ genital mutilation13. Muslim parents in the UK are coaxing their
daughters into submission at the hands of rapist “import” grooms11. And if their
daughters fail to live with their husbands, they are intent upon killing them for bringing
about shame to the family. Despite all this, hard few Muslim women have had the
courage to come forward and admit what injustices their very own society did to them.
And the grand irony amidst all this unimaginable depravity is that it‟s happening right
where the entire world idolizes as the birthplace of enlightenment, liberty, equality of
gender and otherwise, and freedom of speech – Western Europe. Rule of law has clearly
been compromised – much of the violence in the “no-go” suburbs clearly evades the law.
Liberty has been suppressed beyond doubt, especially in the case of Muslim women.
From clothes and makeup to bridegrooms, Muslim women have virtually no freedom of
choice but instead are forced to follow whatever their family deems right. The
immigrants‟ conservative notions of religion and morality whereby women must remain
virgin until marriage but men can do whatever they want, including gang raping others,
has started pushing the limits of Westerners‟ tolerance. Native Europeans are torn
between traditional values of tolerance and fear that unrestrained immigration will
somehow tear apart the national fabric. Despite all this, Western Europe is yet to take a
collective, and powerful response towards these problems. Even when all of its base
values have been compromised, Western European nations, veiled in the fear being
labeled xenophobic, are still supporting multiculturalism for the sake of political
correctness. Imagine, for a moment, the uproar it would cause if a native European
woman were forced to marry someone she did not even know, for the sake of keeping up
the honor of her family. News like this would spread like wildfire, and probably the
entire “enlightened” Western world would protest. However, when a similar thing
happens to Muslim women, all the blame goes the supposed differences in culture.
Furthermore, in some cases, Europeans are not only tolerating the cultural odds but are
actually encouraging it. Take for example the German court ruling that legitimized wife-
beating8. When a Turkish man beat his wife, he didn't get the same punishment as when
a German did it. The court tried to rationalize the crime in terms of the culture, the
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traditions, and the religion. In doing so, the German establishment bolstered confidence
into immigrants to actually follow their age old traditions in the midst of a very modern
society. The Muslim minorities probably perceived that wife-beating, honor killing and
like, which were not regarded as criminal offences in their home country, would be
respected in Germany as well. This very ease of evading judgment indeed will lead to
more of the similar kinds of crimes in the future. Add to it the fact that even if someone
has the courage to come forward and speak out the crimes one‟s society and religion
inflicted upon him, he would be denied fair judgment on cultural grounds. This would
eventually lead to a vicious cycle where perpetrators would increase drastically, but
justice would remain ever elusive. Moreover, yet again another German court sentenced
a man behind the bars only for a mere nine years when proven guilty of honor killing 9.
For the cold blooded murder of his own sister, the punishment he received was arguably
a lot lesser than what would have been had a German committed the same offense.
These acts of acceptance and tolerance at the extremes have indeed made assimilation of
immigrants, and the consequent sentiment of national belonging, impossible in the near
future.
To cap it all, multiculturalism and its shortcomings are believed to have inspired
radicalization among homegrown Muslims. While radicalization is only the first step
towards becoming a full fledged Islamist, it is indeed a dangerous step. The four London
bombers, Mohammad Sidique Khan, Shehzad Tanweer, Jermaine Lindsay and Hasib
Hussain were all British-born Muslims. Lindsay was a convert. Omar Khan Sharif and
Asif Mohammed Hanif who carried out a suicide bombing in Israel, killing people at a
Tel Aviv pizza parlor in April 2003, were from Derby. Sharif went to King‟s College,
London 14. These two examples may suffice to say that homegrown terrorism in indeed
on the rise in Western Europe. The failures of multiculturalism, namely the failure to
assimilate the immigrants into a shared national culture, and the policies of
mollycoddling immigrant populations, have finally started to show their mark. It is now
not only imaginable but very much real that a British born and educated Muslim, living
a “normal” rational life, can suddenly turn against his fellow citizens in the name of
Jihad. This leads us to the conclusion that it is not only that natives do not appreciate
the culture of immigrants, but also immigrants believing that “Western European
women have too many rights and liberties”. Thus the former gradually segregates itself
because of stereotypes like “bike stealing Moroccans” 15, and the latter segregates itself
because of overly liberal values of the former. And it is this alienation that leads to
radicalization, supported by internet forums, Islamic cable TV channels, and certain
members of its own community of Muslims, thus leading to the development of a full-
fledged Islamist.
Indeed, everyone is to blame for this multicultural debacle - the governments, which
blindly supported multiculturalism, without actually giving a thought to the
consequences; the immigrants, who blindly refused to assimilate, who do not feel “at
home” even though they have been born and raised in Western Europe; and the natives,
who subconsciously discriminated against cultural minorities, because their respective
cultures were not in any way compatible. Moreover, now that the fear of Islamophobia
has been spreading rapidly, the segregation, and resulting alienation of Muslim
minorities, is bound to increase even further. An increasingly influential intellectual
consensus on both sides of the Atlantic has presented Europe as a doomed and decadent
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Prof. R. Jackall

continent that is being transformed into an Islamic colony called „Eurabia‟. What began
as an outlandish conspiracy16 theory has now become a dangerous Islamophobic fantasy
that has moved ever closer towards mainstream respectability, as conservative
historians, newspaper columnists and right-wing Zionists find common cause in the
threat to „Judeo-Christian‟ civilization from Muslim immigrants with supposedly
incompatible cultural values17. Buoyed by the ever soaring fertility rates of the
immigrant minorities, „the smarter Islamists . . . know they can never win on the
battlefield, but . . . they can drag things out until Western civilization collapses in on
itself and Islam inherits by default‟ 18. Indeed, multiculturalism has only been accused of
being used as a political tool by Islamists, who want the entire world to hitchhike back to
Islam‟s heyday, when the powerful and prosperous Muslim empire spread from Cordoba
in the West to northern India in the East.
One could argue that there is nothing wrong with a secular society progressing from a
Judeo-Christian majority to an Islamic one. However, would we want the birthplace of
free thinking taken over by a religion which is not only incompatible to democracy, but
also to rational enquiry and political liberty? That the supposedly glorious Islamic
civilization, ruled by caliphs, functioning under “dhimmi” system which discriminated
against those of other religions, was sorely lacking in political liberty is beyond doubt.
That leads us to the logical conclusion that rational enquiry and scholarship were
actually supported by the caliphs, for it was Islam which introduced the West to
numerous innovations, the prime being the concept of zero. However, several scholars
have proven otherwise. The Middle East, due to its geographical advantage, was the
melting pot for ideas from around the world. It was due to this advantage that Muslim
scholars were able to transfer the Indian numerals to the West as the Arabic numeral
system 19. The arts and architecture, including the symbolic parabolic arch, were a
product of Assyrian craft 20. Indeed, Islam accumulated so much knowledge in such a
short time because it is “parasitical by nature and preys upon the pre-Islamic culture in
the conquered lands”21. While it would be hyperbolic to say that the Muslim empire did
not produce any free thinkers, one cannot deny that it was required for them to step out
of the realms of Islam for any rational enquiry. Indeed, Islam, by the very nature of its
core values, is a hindrance to modernity, in the modern day sense of the word.
Nevertheless, it is also true that Western rationality is itself a set of dogmas, in no way
different from the dogmatic outlooks of Islam22. Yet this very rationality not only helped
achieve but actually fueled remarkable development, economically or otherwise, in
countries which embraced it wholeheartedly. It is these connotations of progress and
freedom that the Muslim minorities are yet to accept. Multiculturalism requires
everyone to treat all dogmas, all possible authoritarian political and moral demands
with equal respect. But Shariah law and western democracy, orthodox biblical family
law which demands capital punishment for homosexual relations and modern family
law – which in most progressive countries permits sexual relations between persons of
the same gender – are certainly incompatible22. Despite this, multiculturalism is still
protected by Western states. Thus, multiculturalism has actually brought about an era of
“secular superstition”, where tolerance has inhibited critical thinking and rational
discourse. Much akin to age when the Catholic Church prohibited certain books, free
thinkers are not allowed to express their resentment at the ever growing followers of
centuries-old Islamic thought. Despite the elimination of Judeo-Christian religious
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Prof. R. Jackall

control of society, political liberty, rational thinking, free speech and universities
championing free enquiry are actually on the decline – all thanks to multiculturalism
and associated political correctness.
Therefore, unless Europe wants to propel itself towards decadence, it needs to act fast. If
Islam were to take over Europe, the current definition of “free thinking” would be
virtually eliminated. Instead “free thinkers” would be those who enquire to and for their
religion, within the realms of Islam. Also, Muslims feel a need to Islamicize the values
of the surrounding culture that they perceive as immoral and decadent23. Thus,
eventually, all the “Western rationale” that made Europe and the world what it is today,
would be virtually erased. Indeed, Europe has reached that limit where rationale and
sheer logic have to be weighed more than secularism and tolerance. And to the
enlightenment fundamentalists‟ relief, despite the veil of political correctness, small, yet
firm, steps are slowly being taken. Only in the recent few years has Europe actually
formed institutions to tackle its “immigrant problems”. Sweden, despite its already
overburdened welfare system, is supplying even more economic incentives to create jobs
for immigrants who have failed to settle well24. Hotlines have been setup in France for
any Muslim woman who wants escape the subservience inflicted upon her by her own
culture25. Five of the Germany‟s 16 states have voted to ban teachers and other public
officials from wearing headscarves to work26. Denmark was the first to tighten
immigration laws, and to espouse in its citizens nationalistic sentiments 27. The UK has
also instituted citizenship tests to ensure that immigrants have a greater understanding
of Britain and its culture28. Forced marriages and honor killings have been publicly
condemned and the 2006 Austrian Presidency of the European Council took the
initiative to develop the „Network Against Harmful Traditions‟ proposing legal measures
as well as protection of victims and awareness campaigns 29. For rationale to reign
supreme and not to be stifled by religion, culture and ideology, these small steps are
valuable indeed.
Ideally, multiculturalism was supposed to create a society where everyone respected
everyone else regardless of their religion, race, caste or ideologies. There was one central
flaw in it though – that of human nature. It is only human to feel superior to others.
Discrimination has always plagued human societies. People, in almost every society
around the world, have condescended upon those who differ, possibly on racial,
religious, or ideological grounds. Multiculturalism encouraged difference, thus making
it all the more easier to discriminate against those who were different, consciously or
otherwise. This encouraged segregation in a society which had already been divided
along cultural lines by policies of multiculturalism. Thus, multiculturalism not only
encouraged sustenance of immigrant cultures, but also dissuaded immigrants from ever
integrating into modern European societies. With newer generations, the existing
cultural incompatibility only increased. The end result was obvious: those who were
discouraged to appreciate the Western world tried to do away with Western culture
altogether – by making it more and more Islamic. Thus, what had started out to create a
microcosm of the world where everyone lived in harmony, failed miserably.
Disagreements and violence are indeed to be expected when people of totally different
religions, cultures, ethnicities are brought about together in this world which is
becoming smaller by the day. Indeed, it is the “clash of civilizations” that has resulted in
violence against those of other civilizations, even if they grew up as your next door
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Prof. R. Jackall

neighbors. Multiculturalism has only helped to give momentum to this inevitable clash
of civilizations. Multiculturalism not only proved, but helped to establish that
Westerners erroneously assume that other civilizations can and will embrace
individualism and democracy easily. Thus, unless Europe disbands multiculturalism,
and initiates policies to assimilate marginalized immigrant Muslims right from today, its
fundamental values will soon be expunged past salvation.

Works Cited
1. Paul M. Sniderman And A. Hagendoorn, When Ways Of Life Collide : Multiculturalism
And Its Discontents In The Netherlands, Princeton, N.J., 2007, 1.
2. Rosa Carson, 'What is multiculturalism?' 1999.
3. Tariq Modood, 'Multiculturalism : A Civic Idea', Themes For The 21st Century.2007,
Viii, 193 P.
4. Sniderman et al, When Ways Of Life Collide.
5. Abi Senthilkumaran Munira Mirza, Zein Ja'far, 'Living Apart Together- British Muslims
And The Paradox Of Multiculturalism', Clutha House, 10 Storey’s Gate, London, 2007, 5
6. Jonathan Tisdall, 'Oslo Rape Statistics Shock', Aftenposten, 2001.
7. Shiraz Maher, 'Muslim Britain Is Becoming One Big No-Go Area', Times January 13,
2008
8. Srdja Trifkovic, 'Sharia Comes To Germany', Chronicles: A Magazine Of American
Culture, March 26th, 2007.
9. Ray Furlong, ''Honour Killing' Shocks Germany', Bbc News, 14 March, 2005.
10. Bruce Crumley; Adam Smith, 'Sisters In Hell', Time Magazine, Nov. 24, 2002.
11. Abigail R. Esman, 'Hirshi Ali Leaves Hiding To Spotlight Honor Killings ', Women's E-
News, January 23, 2005.
12. European Monitoring Centre On Racism And Xenophobia, 'Muslims In The European
Union : Discrimination And Islamophobia', 2006, 80.
13. 'Woman Jailed For 48 Circumcisions ', Bbc News, February 17,1999
14. Abi Senthilkumaran, Munira Mirza, Zein Ja'far, 'Living Apart Together- British Muslims
And The Paradox Of Multiculturalism', 13
15. Sniderman, When Ways Of Life Collide.
16. Ye Or Bat, Eurabia : The Euro-Arab Axis, Madison, 2005.
17. Matt Carr, 'You Are Now Entering Eurabia', 2006.
18. Mark Steyn, ‘European population will be ‘‘40 percent Muslim’’ by 2025’, Wall Street
Journal, January 4, 2006.
19. Fjordman, ‘Islam, Christian Europe, And The Greek Heritage’, 2007.
20. Jamie Glazov, 'The Muslim Accomplishments That Weren’t ', Frontpagemagazine.Com,
February 27, 2008.
21. V. S. Naipaul, Among the Believers: An Islamic Journey, New York, 1981.
22. Lars Gustafsson, 'The Logic of Tolerance', February 17, 2007.
23. Melanie Phillips, ‘How the West was lost’, Spectator, May 11, 2002.
24. 'Immigration Issues in Sweden ',
‘http://welcometosweden.blogspot.com/2008/08/immigration-issues-in-sweden.html’,
August 26, 2008
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25. Rebecca Hillauer, 'Neither Whores nor Submissive',

‘www.Signandsight.Com/Features/288.Html’, 2005.
26. Jody K. Biehl , ‘The whore lived like a German’, Spiegel, March 2, 2005
27. John Tagliabue, 'Denmark’s Unabashed Lightning Rod on Immigration ', The New York
Times, November 10, 2007.
28. 'Citizenship In Britain And The United States', February 4, 2008.
29. 'Muslims In The European Union : Discrimination And Islamophobia', 2006, 10