ACPR - Policy Paper 116 - Muslim Immigration and the West

Muslim immigration in the West is a recent phenomenon. Like other immigrants before them, Muslims bring a culture and identity with them, which find expression in many organizations. The attractions of capitalism and democracy, the chance for a better life, encourage the majority to assimilate, again like other immigrants historically. Nonetheless the sustained attack on the nation-state now carried out by the emerging European Union is feeding a backlash of nationalism throughout the continent. This in turn offers an opening to self-proclaimed local leaders who proclaim that assimilation is a threat to Islam, and Muslims instead should impose their beliefs on the majority in what amounts to reverse imperialism. If allowed to pass unchallenged, these rival extremisms have the capacity to undermind democracy in host countries.