Following the horrific ISIL attacks in Paris last November, Republican candidate for US president Donald Trump stunned the world with a call to ban all Muslim immigration to the United States until authorities “figured things out”. The idea that America could shield itself from extremist attacks by banning Muslim immigration sadly found traction among Mr Trump’s supporters.
Many analysts and a large portion of Americans, however, were shocked by Mr Trump’s overtly racist demeanour that explicitly rejected American values of openness. Since the Paris attacks, Donald Trump has continued to promote his populist ban with shocking statements – often transited via Twitter – on a variety of subjects. Following the attack on a nightclub in Orlando last week, Mr Trump reiterated his attacks on Muslims.
This is shocking on many levels. While the attacker in Orlando had Afghan Muslim heritage, he was a born and bred American citizen (in fact, he was born in the same city as Donald Trump). With his renewed calls for a ban on Muslim immigration, which would have had no effect on the Orlando attack, Mr Trump appears not to understand how politics functions nor its role in society.
America has a serious problem with gun violence. President Barack Obama has encouraged a conversation about amending gun laws to curb easy access to high-powered weapons. Regardless of whether Mr Obama is right, what is needed is an honest debate about how to fix the issue of home-grown extremists. Donald Trump, on the other hand, has chosen to attack an entire faith group and question their allegiance to the United States.
Such racist populism can carry a slew of unintended consequences. There has already been a drop in Muslims from abroad travelling to the United States for education. Investment could also start to decline and Washington’s critical alliance with Arab countries across the region is at risk. But the major unintended consequence could be to America’s immigrant mosaic and the very idea of the American dream.
