Posted on 01/23/2016 11:22:44 AM PST by SeekAndFind
A number of U.S. experts on policy and migration have shot down fears of the shootings in Paris and the sex attacks in Cologne happening in America, noting that a direct link with the influx of refugees has not been established in either case, and affirming that America has a strict vetting system.
There has been significant debate in the U.S. over the question of whether 100,000 refugees fleeing war and terrorism should be allowed into the country. Some notable voices, such as evangelical preacher the Rev. Franklin Graham, have directly suggested that attacks, such as the major shootings in Paris, France, in November that led to 130 deaths, and the gang sex assaults in Cologne, Germany. on New Year's Eve, could very well be repeated on U.S. soil.
Dr. Robert P. George, chairman of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, and Susan Fratzke, policy analyst and program coordinator at the Migration Policy Institute, an independent, non-partisan think tank, told The Christian Post in separate interviews, however, that it would be unfair to suggest that welcoming more refugees will heighten the risk of such attacks happening in America.
"The 2015 terrorist attacks in France were mainly perpetrated by citizens of the European Union, not refugees. The three attackers in the January 2015 attacks on Charlie Hebdo magazine and a kosher supermarket were French citizens. Of the nine attackers in the November 13, 2015 Paris attacks, 7 were EU (French or Belgian) citizens. The other two attackers seem [to] have entered the EU in 2015 among refugees and migrants, but their identities and citizenship are still unclear," George told CP.
"These cases illustrate the risks of allowing people to enter without screening, which is not the case with U.S. refugee resettlement," he said.
Fratzke added that the Syrian passports found on one of the suspects in the November Paris attacks were shown to be fake, and stressed the importance to withhold judgment until all the facts are known.
"In addition, refugees who enter the U.S. through the resettlement program are heavily vetted before arriving and screened against several security databases. No refugee resettled to the U.S. has, to our knowledge, ever carried out a terrorist act," she said.
George noted that the perpetrators of the terror attacks in Paris were individuals who subscribe to the extremist ideology of the Islamic State and other similar groups, and said that many of the refugees are fleeing precisely such violence.
"The United States can and must take the strongest possible security precautions in receiving refugees, but we must not fall prey to the fear that refugees who happen to be Muslims are terrorists in disguise," he urged, adding that many of victims of terror in Syria and Iraq are Shia and Sunni Muslims who have resisted violent ideology.
Fratzke said that regardless of whether the Paris and Cologne attacks are connected, there is some validity to concerns regarding the lack of registration or identity verification in Europe.
"Authorities in Greece and along the route have been overwhelmed. Refugees and migrants arriving in Europe are not properly fingerprinted, nor are their identities, biometrics, and histories verified against known databases. Systems to do this exist in Europe, but they are not being enforced," the MPI policy analyst highlighted.
She added that unlike the case in Europe, refugees coming to America are screened and their refugee claim status is assessed before they ever step foot in the country. The refugees are also required to pass extensive security and biographic checks before they arrive.
"While both systems (asylum and resettlement) are valuable, the resettlement system offers a safe path to safety for refugees, that negates the need for them to use smugglers and undertake dangerous sea journeys," Fratzke said.
"Resettlement also allows more control for the state taking the refugees in terms of who is coming, when they arrive, etc. A robust resettlement system from the Syria region could perhaps be to Europe's benefit by allowing some of the current flows to happen in a more orderly way."
In a previous interview with CP, Stefani Weiss, director and expert on European politics at Bertelsmann Stiftung, an independent, nonprofit German foundation, also talked about some of the particularities of the vetting systems in Europe, noting that because of the Schengen Agreement that created borderless areas, it is up to countries with outer borders, such as Italy and Greece, to deal with the initial influx of refugees and properly vet and register them.
Of course it could. Like a high school basketball game? Church?
Not if, but when.
Really they have happened in much bigger numbers if you count all of the assaults by our "migrants" They don't have to all happen at the same moment to have happened.
Exactly, the only problem is that camel humper expects to die.
The mythical ostrich, his head buried in the sands of self-inflicted ignorance, never solved his social problems.
I don’t believe they could. We just don’t have the same passivity and congential guilt that Western Europeans seem to have.
I, for one, am frankly very happy to have experts like these to help me along with my life. I've gotta tell you, my fears that similar attacks will happen in America have completely melted away after reading this article.
As a way of thanking these wonderful experts for their wonderful expertise I would like to give them all a small piece of advice: sue the higher education institute at which you received your higher education. You did not get what you paid for.
Yeah, right. More Americans were killed on 9/11 then were killed in Paris.
RE: We just don’t have the same passivity and congential guilt that Western Europeans seem to have
Not even in heavily Democrat controlled cities?
I only know if some animal tries to mess with me or mine, I will kick his ass, or die trying. I have been told I fight dirty.
Well.. sure.. a government office, but in open public it would likely be a different outcome.
It WILL happen here.
Yes, about 2872 more, including some of my coworkers, friends, and one relative. NEVER FORGET.
My sympathies for your loss. My youngest brother almost took a job as a chef in The Sky Box Cafe in The South Tower. NEVER FORGIVE AND NEVER FORGET.
Maybe the fine distinction the article is making is that the terror attacks in USA have not been committed by refugees... per se! San Bernadino was a green card immigrant and a citizen (or some such?); 9/11 was students and visitors on expired visas; Boston marathon was some other official status (which is irrelevant as both Russia and Saudi Arabia pre-advised the USA of those specific brothers high-risk status); LAX was on a visa.
So what could we have to fear from muslims if they are just sweet, poor, hungry REFUGEES!?! That makes it all OK.
That is the way these ivory tower psuedo-intellectuals fool themselves and try to fool us. Notice the organizations with which they are affiliated. The “talking head” types use artificial constructs, see. They create a separate reality with self-contained logic you cannot contradict unless you know what is MISSING from it.
The problem with this typical professorial reasoning is that it only considers “known knowns” in the equation, and thus cannot logically arrive at other possible and less obvious terrorist intentions and plans. It cannot even begin to ponder “unknowns” or design an offensive strategy.
This is very different from military reasoning, but then we as a country seem to have decided not to view this invasion as an attack or act of war. Hence we are always responding to islamic terrorism on the defensive.
Thank you, jmacusa!
My youngest brother is a sous chef in NYC, has been for thirty years. In late November of 2000 he took a job with the New York State Dept. Of Human Service and in a partnership with the NY Dept of Education for Special needs Adults and a sponsorship with The Port Authority of NY/NJ teaching a class at The New York School of Culinary Arts teaching developmentally challenged adults the basics of food preparation, sanitary cleaning of utensils, preparing salads, preparing a large banquet hall serving tables, etc. My kid bother is an engaging, funny, patient and a good teacher. His students just loved him . Upon completion of their training a lot of his students were given jobs in The Sky Box Cafe in The South Tower and Windows On The World Restaurant in The North Tower. The woman who ran the program wanted Pat to come work for her managing both of the Towers two restaurants. My brother thanked her but he had a better offer to work in one of those swanky uptown NYC restaurants where a streak dinner runs you about $200. On 9/11 almost all of my brothers students and the woman manager were all killed. That really affected my brother. Even after all these years he tells me ‘’At night, they come to me in my dreams. I see their faces They’re calling to to me and there’s nothing I can do for them’’. I have a hatred for Islam that sometimes even scares me. I hate this 7th. barbarism like nothing I have ever hated.
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