By Scott Christian
“Prejudice: Irrational suspicion or hatred of a particular group, race or religion” (The American Heritage College Dictionary).
As a member of a Christian faith community and a retired educator, I am worried about the lessons in prejudice that our children are learning from some of the current political discourse. Having taught our children in church of Christ’s love for our neighbor, and in school of the importance of the constitutional rights guaranteed all Americans, I am watching these lessons being undermined by hate-filled speech. Here are two made by a presidential candidate — one a year ago, the second last week.
“When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best…They’re sending people that have lots of problems, and they’re bringing those problems with us. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people.” (Donald Trump, presidential announcement, June 16, 2015)
“There are many, many people, thousands of people already in our country that are sick with hate. And people that are around him, Muslims know who they are, largely. They know who they are. They have to turn them in. They know who they are. They see them.” (Trump, June 13, 2016)
The facts. “For more than a century, innumerable studies have confirmed two simple yet powerful truths about the relationship between immigration and crime: immigrants are less likely to commit serious crimes or be behind bars than the native-born, and high rates of immigration are associated with lower rates of violent crime and property crime. This holds true for both legal immigrants and the unauthorized, regardless of their country of origin or level of education. In other words, the overwhelming majority of immigrants are not ‘criminals’ by any commonly accepted definition of the term.” (www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org)
The All Dulles Area Muslim Society (ADAMS), one of the largest Muslim communities in the United States, has a close working relationship with the FBI’s Washington Field Office, has hosted several Town Hall meetings with the FBI WFO at their mosque, and has had many advisory sessions with the WFO director and field agents.
Clearly there are Americans of all stripes and colors who commit violent crimes in the name of numerous ideologies, ranging from white supremacy to radical Islam. Our government is currently investing billions of dollars and millions of man-hours annually investigating and tracking these people. However, the vast majority of all Americans, including those of Mexican descent or who believe in Islam, are moral, law-abiding citizens who share our American values.
To negatively categorize one ethnic or religious community using false and disparaging statements is “racist,” and it is directly contrary to the lessons we teach our children. My worry, now that politics has dipped to a new low in tone and content, is that we are teaching our children that politics is no different from a reality TV show or a game on a handheld electronic device. That is, there are no religious or moral standards; it’s only about entertainment and winning.
Before it’s too late for our children and our country, let’s demand that our candidates refrain from making racist or prejudicial statements that run contrary to the founding principles of our nation and the core beliefs of all world religions.
Scott Christian of Marshall, is a chapter leader for the Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy.