Are immigrants a threat?

ISIS has grown greatly in number and its’ violence has caught the attention of many Americans. The problem that comes with this is the fact that some Americans have been blaming the immigrants. Some people believe that the United States should not allow more Muslim immigrants or travellers into the country since they could be ISIS members and planning an attack. This seems very immoral and it is against the beliefs and constitution of the United States to discriminate against a religion. Changing the system we use for immigrants will do nothing to prevent ISIS attacks.

            First, it is clear that immigrants did not commit most of the attacks by ISIS but instead Muslims who already lived in the country committed them. If we changed the system as soon as we learned about ISIS, all acts of violence in the US (or even in France, Brussels, etc.) would likely still have occurred. It is impossible to prevent the ideology of ISIS from crossing borders. It is definitely possible that it could cross the border as an immigrant, but this is unnecessary. There are many ISIS supporters throughout the world. An ISIS member from Iraq does not need to immigrate to a new country to have supporters or power there. 

            Not only are there American citizens willing to attack their countries for ISIS but they are also willing to give up their entire lives to go fight with them in Iraq. Simon Cottee shows this perfectly in her article “What ISIS Women Want”. She writes about some women who left their countries to fight with ISIS in Iraq.  They leave because they believe in the ideology. As seen by in Umm Muthanna’s tweets, she did not believe in the feminist “constricted ideology” and felt like it was being pushed on her. Umm happily left the country, as many others have, to live in a place that holds her ideologies. The point I am making with her story is that she LEFT for her ideology, she did not immigrate to a country they may plan to attack. This type of situation is more common since there are ISIS members all over the world so it is not necessary to immigrate for it. If they are immigrating, it is likely to a place ISIS is prevalent and they can be open about their beliefs.

            The United States already has a very strict border control compared to other countries and a system in place to monitor possible terrorists. The government is monitoring many people throughout the country who may be suspects of terrorism. It is somewhat affective since many terrorists who committed acts of violence were being monitored however there is not much the government can do just because they are suspicious. There needs to be evidence before taking action so attempting to create a more in depth system will likely give very few positive results. The chances of them finding information proving that person will cause something violent will happen is unlikely. It is possible and for that reason they should continue, but changing the system is not necessary. The border control in the United States is also very strict, immigrants are screened and it is unlikely that an ISIS member would make it through all of the screening.
          Overall, ISIS should not be a huge issue for immigration. Border control should be careful about who they let into the country but deciding who can and cannot immigrate here should not be based on their religion. In the United States all citizens are allowed to practice whatever religion they would like and discrimination against a certain religious group goes against our values and morals. It is completely unfair to Muslims wishing to immigrate to the United States. Strict immigration laws should not be considered a way to prevent ISIS attacks.

-Alyssa Viets Blog Post #1