Salute the Danish Flag - it's a Symbol of Western Freedom
In 1978-9 I was living and studying in Denmark.
But in 1978 - even in Copenhagen, one didn't see Muslim
immigrants. The
Danish population embraced visitors, celebrated the exotic, went
out of its
way to protect each of its citizens. It was proud of its new
brand of
socialist liberalism - one in development since the
conservatives had lost
power in 1929 - a system where no worker had to struggle to
survive, where
one ultimately could count upon the state as in, perhaps, no
other western
nation at the time. The rest of Europe saw the Scandinavians as
free-thinking, progressive and infinitely generous in their welfare
policies. Denmark boasted low crime rates, devotion to the
environment, a
superior educational system and a history of humanitarianism.
Denmark was also most generous in its immigration policies - it
offered the
best welcome in Europe to the new immigrant: generous welfare
payments from
first arrival plus additional perks in transportation, housing and
education. It was determined to set a world example for
inclusiveness and
multiculturalism. How could it have predicted that one day in
2005 a series
of political cartoons in a newspaper would spark violence that
would leave
dozens dead in the streets - all because its commitment to
multiculturalism
would come back to bite?
By the 1990's the growing urban Muslim population was obvious -
and its
unwillingness to integrate into Danish society was obvious. Years of
immigrants had settled into Muslim-exclusive enclaves. As the Muslim
leadership became more vocal about what they considered the
decadence of
Denmark's liberal way of life, the Danes - once so welcoming -
began to feel
slighted. Many Danes had begun to see Islam as incompatible with
their
long-standing values: belief in personal liberty and free speech, in
equality for women, in tolerance for other ethnic groups, and a
deep pride
in Danish heritage and history.
The New York Post in 2002 ran an article by Daniel Pipes and
Lars Hedegaard,
in which they forecasted accurately that the growing immigrant
problem in
Denmark would explode. In the article they reported:
"Muslim immigrants.constitute 5 percent of the population but
consume
upwards of 40 percent of the welfare spending."
"Muslims are only 4 percent of Denmark's 5.4 million people but
make up a
majority of the country's convicted rapists, an especially
combustible issue
given that practically all the female victims are non-Muslim.
Similar, if
lesser, disproportions are found in other crimes."
"Over time, as Muslim immigrants increase in numbers, they wish
less to mix
with the indigenous population. A recent survey finds that only
5 percent of
young Muslim immigrants would readily marry a Dane."
"Forced marriages - promising a newborn daughter in Denmark to a
male cousin
in the home country, then compelling her to marry him, sometimes
on pain of
death - are one problem"
"Muslim leaders openly declare their goal of introducing Islamic
law once
Denmark's Muslim population grows large enough - a
not-that-remote prospect.
If present trends persist, one sociologist estimates, every
third inhabitant
of Denmark in 40 years will be Muslim."
It is easy to understand why a growing number of Danes would
feel that
Muslim immigrants show little respect for Danish values and
laws. An example
is the phenomenon common to other European countries and the
U.S.: some
Muslims in Denmark who opted to leave the Muslim faith have been
murdered in
the name of Islam, while others hide in fear for their lives.
Jews are also
threatened and harassed openly by Muslim leaders in Denmark, a
country where
once Christian citizens worked to smuggle out nearly all of
their 7,000 Jews
by night to Sweden - before the Nazis could invade. I think of
my Danish
friend Elsa - who as a teenager had dreaded crossing the street
to the
bakery every morning under the eyes of occupying Nazi soldiers -
and I
wonder what she would say today.
In 2001, Denmark elected the most conservative government in
some 70 years -
one that had some decidedly non-generous ideas about liberal
unfettered
immigration. Today Denmark has the strictest immigration
policies in Europe.
( Its effort to protect itself has been met with accusations of
"racism" by
liberal media across Europe - even as other governments struggle
to right
the social problems wrought by years of too-lax immigration.) If
you wish to
become Danish, you must attend three years of language classes.
You must
pass a test on Denmark's history, culture, and a Danish language
test. You
must live in Denmark for 7 years before applying for
citizenship. You must
demonstrate an intent to work, and have a job waiting. If you
wish to bring
a spouse into Denmark, you must both be over 24 years of age,
and you won't
find it so easy anymore to move your friends and family to
Denmark with you.
You will not be allowed to build a mosque in Copenhagen.
Although your
children have a choice of some 30 Arabic culture and language
schools in
Denmark, they will be strongly encouraged to assimilate to
Danish society in
ways that past immigrants weren't.
In 2006, the Danish minister for employment, Claus Hjort
Frederiksen, spoke
publicly of the burden of Muslim immigrants on the Danish
welfare system,
and it was horrifying: the government's welfare committee had
calculated
that if immigration from Third World countries were blocked,
75 percent of the cuts needed to sustain the huge welfare system
in coming
decades would be unnecessary. In other words, the welfare system
as it
existed was being exploited by immigrants to the point of eventually
bankrupting the government. "We are simply forced to adopt a new
policy on
immigration. The calculations of the welfare committee are
terrifying and
show how unsuccessful the integration of immigrants has been up
to now," he
said.
A large thorn in the side of Denmark's imams is the Minister of
Immigration
and Integration, Rikke Hvilshoj. She makes no bones about the
new policy
toward immigration, "The number of foreigners coming to the
country makes a
difference," Hvilshøj says, "There is an inverse correlation
between how
many come here and how well we can receive the foreigners that
come." And on
Muslim immigrants needing to demonstrate a willingness to blend
in, "In my
view, Denmark should be a country with room for different
cultures and
religions. Some values, however, are more important than others.
We refuse
to question democracy, equal rights, and freedom of speech."
Hvilshoj has paid a price for her show of backbone. Perhaps to
test her
resolve, the leading radical imam in Denmark, Ahmed Abdel Rahman
Abu Laban,
demanded that the government pay blood money to the family of a
Muslim who
was murdered in a suburb of Copenhagen, stating that the
family's thirst for
revenge could be thwarted for money. When Hvilshoj dismissed his
demand, he
argued that in Muslim culture the payment of retribution money
was common,
to which Hvilshoj replied that what is done in a Muslim country
is not
necessarily what is done in Denmark. The Muslim reply came soon
after: her
house was torched while she, her husband and children slept. All
managed to
escape unharmed, but she and her family were moved to a secret
location and
she and other ministers were assigned bodyguards for the first
time - in a
country where such murderous violence was once so scarce.
Her government has slid to the RIGHT, and her borders have
tightened. Many
believe that what happens in the next decade will determine
whether Denmark
survives as a bastion of good living, humane thinking and social
responsibility, or whether it becomes a nation at civil war with
supporters
of Sharia law. And meanwhile, Americans clamor for stricter
immigration
policies, and demand an end to state welfare programs that allow
many
immigrants to live on the public dole. As we in America look at
the enclaves
of Muslims amongst us, and see those who enter our shores too
easily, dare
live on our taxes, yet refuse to embrace our culture, respect our
traditions, participate in our legal system, obey our laws,
speak our
language, appreciate our history . . we would do well to look to
Denmark,
and say a prayer for her future and for our own.
In 1978-9 I was living and studying in Denmark.
But in 1978 - even in Copenhagen, one didn't see Muslim
immigrants. The
Danish population embraced visitors, celebrated the exotic, went
out of its
way to protect each of its citizens. It was proud of its new
brand of
socialist liberalism - one in development since the
conservatives had lost
power in 1929 - a system where no worker had to struggle to
survive, where
one ultimately could count upon the state as in, perhaps, no
other western
nation at the time. The rest of Europe saw the Scandinavians as
free-thinking, progressive and infinitely generous in their welfare
policies. Denmark boasted low crime rates, devotion to the
environment, a
superior educational system and a history of humanitarianism.
Denmark was also most generous in its immigration policies - it
offered the
best welcome in Europe to the new immigrant: generous welfare
payments from
first arrival plus additional perks in transportation, housing and
education. It was determined to set a world example for
inclusiveness and
multiculturalism. How could it have predicted that one day in
2005 a series
of political cartoons in a newspaper would spark violence that
would leave
dozens dead in the streets - all because its commitment to
multiculturalism
would come back to bite?
By the 1990's the growing urban Muslim population was obvious -
and its
unwillingness to integrate into Danish society was obvious. Years of
immigrants had settled into Muslim-exclusive enclaves. As the Muslim
leadership became more vocal about what they considered the
decadence of
Denmark's liberal way of life, the Danes - once so welcoming -
began to feel
slighted. Many Danes had begun to see Islam as incompatible with
their
long-standing values: belief in personal liberty and free speech, in
equality for women, in tolerance for other ethnic groups, and a
deep pride
in Danish heritage and history.
The New York Post in 2002 ran an article by Daniel Pipes and
Lars Hedegaard,
in which they forecasted accurately that the growing immigrant
problem in
Denmark would explode. In the article they reported:
"Muslim immigrants.constitute 5 percent of the population but
consume
upwards of 40 percent of the welfare spending."
"Muslims are only 4 percent of Denmark's 5.4 million people but
make up a
majority of the country's convicted rapists, an especially
combustible issue
given that practically all the female victims are non-Muslim.
Similar, if
lesser, disproportions are found in other crimes."
"Over time, as Muslim immigrants increase in numbers, they wish
less to mix
with the indigenous population. A recent survey finds that only
5 percent of
young Muslim immigrants would readily marry a Dane."
"Forced marriages - promising a newborn daughter in Denmark to a
male cousin
in the home country, then compelling her to marry him, sometimes
on pain of
death - are one problem"
"Muslim leaders openly declare their goal of introducing Islamic
law once
Denmark's Muslim population grows large enough - a
not-that-remote prospect.
If present trends persist, one sociologist estimates, every
third inhabitant
of Denmark in 40 years will be Muslim."
It is easy to understand why a growing number of Danes would
feel that
Muslim immigrants show little respect for Danish values and
laws. An example
is the phenomenon common to other European countries and the
U.S.: some
Muslims in Denmark who opted to leave the Muslim faith have been
murdered in
the name of Islam, while others hide in fear for their lives.
Jews are also
threatened and harassed openly by Muslim leaders in Denmark, a
country where
once Christian citizens worked to smuggle out nearly all of
their 7,000 Jews
by night to Sweden - before the Nazis could invade. I think of
my Danish
friend Elsa - who as a teenager had dreaded crossing the street
to the
bakery every morning under the eyes of occupying Nazi soldiers -
and I
wonder what she would say today.
In 2001, Denmark elected the most conservative government in
some 70 years -
one that had some decidedly non-generous ideas about liberal
unfettered
immigration. Today Denmark has the strictest immigration
policies in Europe.
( Its effort to protect itself has been met with accusations of
"racism" by
liberal media across Europe - even as other governments struggle
to right
the social problems wrought by years of too-lax immigration.) If
you wish to
become Danish, you must attend three years of language classes.
You must
pass a test on Denmark's history, culture, and a Danish language
test. You
must live in Denmark for 7 years before applying for
citizenship. You must
demonstrate an intent to work, and have a job waiting. If you
wish to bring
a spouse into Denmark, you must both be over 24 years of age,
and you won't
find it so easy anymore to move your friends and family to
Denmark with you.
You will not be allowed to build a mosque in Copenhagen.
Although your
children have a choice of some 30 Arabic culture and language
schools in
Denmark, they will be strongly encouraged to assimilate to
Danish society in
ways that past immigrants weren't.
In 2006, the Danish minister for employment, Claus Hjort
Frederiksen, spoke
publicly of the burden of Muslim immigrants on the Danish
welfare system,
and it was horrifying: the government's welfare committee had
calculated
that if immigration from Third World countries were blocked,
75 percent of the cuts needed to sustain the huge welfare system
in coming
decades would be unnecessary. In other words, the welfare system
as it
existed was being exploited by immigrants to the point of eventually
bankrupting the government. "We are simply forced to adopt a new
policy on
immigration. The calculations of the welfare committee are
terrifying and
show how unsuccessful the integration of immigrants has been up
to now," he
said.
A large thorn in the side of Denmark's imams is the Minister of
Immigration
and Integration, Rikke Hvilshoj. She makes no bones about the
new policy
toward immigration, "The number of foreigners coming to the
country makes a
difference," Hvilshøj says, "There is an inverse correlation
between how
many come here and how well we can receive the foreigners that
come." And on
Muslim immigrants needing to demonstrate a willingness to blend
in, "In my
view, Denmark should be a country with room for different
cultures and
religions. Some values, however, are more important than others.
We refuse
to question democracy, equal rights, and freedom of speech."
Hvilshoj has paid a price for her show of backbone. Perhaps to
test her
resolve, the leading radical imam in Denmark, Ahmed Abdel Rahman
Abu Laban,
demanded that the government pay blood money to the family of a
Muslim who
was murdered in a suburb of Copenhagen, stating that the
family's thirst for
revenge could be thwarted for money. When Hvilshoj dismissed his
demand, he
argued that in Muslim culture the payment of retribution money
was common,
to which Hvilshoj replied that what is done in a Muslim country
is not
necessarily what is done in Denmark. The Muslim reply came soon
after: her
house was torched while she, her husband and children slept. All
managed to
escape unharmed, but she and her family were moved to a secret
location and
she and other ministers were assigned bodyguards for the first
time - in a
country where such murderous violence was once so scarce.
Her government has slid to the RIGHT, and her borders have
tightened. Many
believe that what happens in the next decade will determine
whether Denmark
survives as a bastion of good living, humane thinking and social
responsibility, or whether it becomes a nation at civil war with
supporters
of Sharia law. And meanwhile, Americans clamor for stricter
immigration
policies, and demand an end to state welfare programs that allow
many
immigrants to live on the public dole. As we in America look at
the enclaves
of Muslims amongst us, and see those who enter our shores too
easily, dare
live on our taxes, yet refuse to embrace our culture, respect our
traditions, participate in our legal system, obey our laws,
speak our
language, appreciate our history . . we would do well to look to
Denmark,
and say a prayer for her future and for our own.
