Racism is not a new term. Recent influx of refugees and resultant clash of their ideas, religion, race, color and other qualities with that of Europeans was expected. In the same way, when we go to a new area or among people different from us, there can be some bitter experiences. Even those Muslims who have already settled in Europe or America for many decades also experience an uneasy feeling from time to time. The hatred based on race and religion was high after the tragic incidents of 9/11, and it is again soaring after Paris attacks and tragedy of San Bernardino. We will check some events and try to find out what are the possible reasons behind hatred based on racism.
Soon after the attack of San Bernardino, Republican front-runner Donald Trump came up with his idea that all the Muslims should be banned from entering US to stop such attacks in future. There was immediate response from different people who condemned his remarks. Mr. Trump is a wealthy and successful businessman and he is leading the race for White House among the republican candidates so it would not be wise to think that he gave these remarks in sudden outburst of emotions. Just like a successful entrepreneur, he might have given his remarks after careful calculation but his past comments show that he is a man who can be easily driven away by emotions. Once he called Mexicans as supporters of drug trafficking and angered all the Mexican-Americans. Then he made his personality more controversial by giving similar comments against other ethnic groups of American society as well. These cases show a few facts about racism and Mr. Trump is not an expectation. Racism is always found in those who have strong belief in superiority of a specific group on others. This may sound strange but it is a fact that there are millions of those who consider their group superior on others and it includes of highly educated people or groups as well. There is another fact that the feelings of superiority nurtured and groomed for centuries cannot be removed in a few years’ time or knowledge of a few books. Secondly, racism is bad but those who cannot control their emotions usually express it. This weakness is visible in individuals like Donald Trump or groups like those that are responsible for attacking and using bad language against migrants in Europe.
However, it is a sad fact that many people use racism as a tool to promote their own benefits or gains, ignoring the disastrous outcomes it may have on thoughts and lives of those who are directly affected by this. As I mentioned before, Mr. Trump might be a racist of many generations or may have no control on his sudden outburst of his emotions but at the same time, he is a successful entrepreneur who knows well all the calculations and outcomes of his remarks. Because of his comments based on racism, he has definitely won the support of people who think like him or those Americans who are under fear and who were desperate to hear something like this.
Racism is like a viral disease; it can easily contaminate people in large numbers when it spreads. However, this virus can only travel if it has the support of some prominent figures of a society. Soon after the attacks of Paris and San Bernardino, the feelings of hatred based on racism travelled on all lengths of Europe and America as it was promoted by people like Trump and the coverage it got from the media.
Racism can also have its destructive implications in long term. When a number of state governments in US banned the entry of refugees after the attacks of Paris and San Bernardino, they did this under the fear of similar attacks in their states but they also lost the opportunity of progress and diversity that these migrants could have brought with them. A number of Canadian cities like Toronto and others are thriving as there are people from varying backgrounds and this diversity adds to the overall productivity of all its inhabitants. It is the case with the new cabinet of Canada where there are ministers from all the groups and races and the Prime Minister has chosen the best cabinet based on their talents and abilities and not race or background.
When we talk of exact opposite, there are also interesting observations. People who have experienced the bitterness of racism or have experience of living and working with people of different races know that racism is detrimental for the world where people are getting closer day by day and getting benefited from each other. It is also less in educated people or groups or differences based on racism is high in regions or people who are less educated. Education helps the people make wise decisions and control their emotions. When Barack Obama gave the statement that terrorism should not be associated with any specific group or religion and Islam does not believe in terror, he did so because of a number of factors. First, he descends from a background who were the victims of racism in past. Then he is highly educated and has learned from his experiences that it is not in benefit of anyone. Thirdly, he is a man of good calculations and the way Donald Trump used it negatively to gain some support, he used it positively as he is leading the country that is considered the champion of democracy and he has to represent a nation that is the most diverse in the world. As he is far more important and influential than Donald Trump so his words also helped ease the tensions based on racism, not only in US but also in Europe and other parts of the world.
As far as negative outcomes of racism are concerned, it can be more disastrous that one can even think of. Terrorist and extremist organizations as Al-Qaeda and Daesh propagate that west is the enemy of Muslims and they will never accept them. When Muslims, who are living for decades in Europe and America, become target of the hatred due to incidents like Paris attacks and they are alienated from a society that they are trying to become a part of, the propaganda of terrorist or extremist groups seem reasonable for them. In worst cases, some people can go and join these groups and carry out a terror attack in the heart of Europe or America. There were a number of attacks in Europe that were carried out by those who had fallen prey to terror groups when they experienced the bitter hatred by their neighbors based on racism.
As far as the exact opposite of racism is concerned, it is kindness, humanity and other good feelings exhibited by people, groups and countries from time to time. One recent example came from Bangalore of India. During the recent deadly rains and floods, a group of Muslim youngsters used a mosque to provide shelter and food to large numbers of people in which majority were Hindus and Christians. The firm stance of Angela Merkel to welcome refugees to her country, the remarks of Obama, and voluntary help of people of Europe to provide with food and shelter to those who were arriving to their countries are a few examples in which we see no racism but pure humanity and kindness.