Introduction
The Cold War was a major global upheaval that left the world polarized more than ever before. Ideological differences characterized this rivalry since the West pursued notions of capitalism while the East popularized the concept of communism. The anxieties arising from the issue of European immigrants echo the sentiments of securitization and Islamophobia following the events of September 11. This argumentative essay gives a detailed analysis and comparison of these two historical developments.
Comparison and Discussion
Throughout the Cold War period, Western Europe and North America became the destinations of many immigrants from different regions across Europe. Most of these people managed to transform the economies and cultural values of their new nations (Bauder & Shields, 2015). Some Europeans started to move across the Atlantic fearing the possible consequences or outcomes of the war. During the time, many people opposed such a trend since it could disorient their experiences and lives. Some citizens argued that such a development could undermine the originality of the established cultural values. The Canadian Encyclopaedia (2020) indicates that mixed reactions continued to prevail since there were some parties who wanted to promote diversity while others supported homogenous societies.
Similarly, the collapse of the Soviet and the subsequent end of the Cold War triggered an unprecedented movement of Germans to the West. With such developments taking place, more people remained anxious and predicted that the increasing number of immigrants could jeopardize global peace and even trigger the spread of communism in Europe and North America. The majority of the immigrants in North America encountered numerous challenges, such as discrimination and prejudice. Many Americans applied the lenses of WWI and WWII whenever associating with these European immigrants (Bauder & Shields, 2015). They believed that such groups had disoriented global peace in the past. However, such thoughts were misinformed since the majority of the immigrants feared potential wars and unrests that could arise from the Cold War.
Similarly, negative sentiments have existed in the West following the infamous 9/11 attacks. A discourse of securitization and Islamophobia existed in the United States and across the west after this event. Many people developed negative views and thoughts regarding the position of Muslims and Arabs in different societies. The majority of the citizens chose to isolate, discriminate, and even disassociate with these individuals.
They believed that Islam was a radical religion that taught its followers to pursue terrorism to change the world (Islam Web, 2016). In America and Canada, cases of Islamophia increased significantly after the attack since the Arabs and members of Islam were seen as the new threat to economic, social, and political stability. The action different governments undertook to attack Afghanistan to fight global terrorism informed the decisions and views of the greatest number of people.
Despite such developments, many citizens have stood up to teach others about the nature of terrorism and why the existing forms of securitization and Islamophia remain misinformed. Those who pursue such acts are radical groups whose intentions and goals are not in accordance with the teachings of Islam (Mael, 2017). Such an understanding can guide the global society to understand this malpractice and find evidence-based solutions to it.
Conclusion
The above discussions have identified the major sentiments and anxieties that emerged during the Cold War due to the increasing number of European immigrants. These ideologies echo most of the perceptions and negativities towards Muslims in post-9/11 discourse. Historians should examine such issues carefully in order to guide more people to understand the realities of terrorism and learn how they can relate with others without prejudice.
References
Bauder, H., & Shields, J. (Eds.). (2015). Immigrant experiences in North America. Toronto, ON: Canadian Scholars’ Press.
The Canadian Encyclopaedia. (2020). Canada and the Cold War. Web.
Islam Web. (2016). Islam in America: Documentary, facts, history, religion, beliefs, Muslims [Video file]. Web.
Mael, S. (2017). Reel bad Arabs: How Hollywood vilifies a people. Web.