opinion

Why Culture Matters

It seems that in today’s political climate there are more and more politicians and protesters demanding that America, and the rest of the Western world, loosen their borders and accept more migrants into their country. Prominent politicians such as Germany’s Angela Merkel and Canada’s Justin Trudeau have consistently defended open border policies and multiculturalism, claiming that “diversity is our greatest strength” ad nauseam. Even American politicians like Elizabeth Warren and Nancy Pelosi have supported multicultural policies such as sanctuary cities, affirmative action and looser border security.

I’m sure many of you have heard the term “multiculturalism” thrown around on news sites and TV lately, but in order to be perfectly transparent with definitions, multiculturalism is defined as “the belief that different cultures, races, ethnicities and groups deserve special acknowledgment of their differences when said cultures exist in a culturally pluralistic society.” A culturally pluralistic society, it should be said, is the preferred end goal of multiculturalism advocates. But it is my view that culturally pluralistic societies, and multiculturalism in general, are not only a cultural Marxist idea, but also incredibly damaging to the host culture. In the case of the modern world, that host culture is the Western world.

I know that this topic is uncomfortable or even downright offensive for many people to read or listen to. Some of you may have even written me off as some sort of bigot already for suggesting that there are certain cultures that we in the West should not accept and merge with. To this, I say sorry, but the idea that cultural diversity or mass immigration somehow strengthens a nation is not only historically inaccurate, it is dangerous for the modern Western world. Far too many people have accepted the idea that what we Westerners need is more “cultural enrichment,” more immigrants from other continents so that we can experience all their “cool” and “fascinating” cultures.

The simple truth of the matter is there are many cultures in the world that do not mesh with one another. We’ve seen examples of this throughout history, most recently with the aptly named “European Migrant Crisis.” For those who don’t follow the politics from across the pond, several EU countries accepted hundreds of thousands of Middle Eastern and North African immigrants in 2015. The most prominent of these countries are Germany, U.K. and Sweden, with Germany accepting roughly 9 million asylum seekers from 2015-2016.

Think of cultures in terms of how we treat a chemistry lab. Chemistry labs contain many different and unique chemicals and compounds, each with its own set of particular traits and properties. But what happens when you begin mixing these chemicals and compounds randomly without studying the properties of each of them and how they might react when combined with other chemicals? Well, you don’t have to have a doctorate in chemistry to know the reaction will most likely be quite volatile. We’ve seen one of these reactions in the form of North African and Middle Eastern migrants in Europe. These cultures contain ideas and practices that do not mix, such as the backward way in which these cultures treat women and sexual minorities. In the West, homosexuality and gender equality have both been accepted by the vast majority of society, to the point where sexual pride parades are a regular occurrence in large cities, and many companies have made a point of hiring women and men at equal rates.

Now compare this to the cultures of places such as Saudi Arabia or the United Arab Emirates (UAE), where women aren’t treated as equals to men in the legal system or even allowed to go out in public without a male relative escorting them. In most of Africa, child marriages and female genital mutilation are still a regular occurrence. In fact, according to the World Health Organization, more than 200 million African and Middle Eastern girls are forced into female genital mutilation. Try having a pride parade in Iran or Syria, where homosexuals are regularly killed in brutal fashion, such as by stoning or public hanging.

So I ask you how can the cultures of places such as Syria, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria, Somalia and many other countries integrate and coexist with the cultures of Great Britain, France, Spain, Canada or the United States of America? How can cultures that have such antithetical views and beliefs to our own merge with our own? And if we do accept many immigrants from these cultures, how far should we accept and promote these cultures? Should we set up Sharia courts alongside our own common law system? Should we make female genital mutilation legal in order to respect their cultural differences? Just how far does “cultural enrichment” go before we say enough?

And I haven’t even addressed the increased risk of racial and ethnic tensions and crimes that multiculturalism brings to the table, nor have I mentioned the corrosive ethical relativism that underlines so much of multicultural thinking (a hallmark of cultural marxism dogma). But sadly, I don’t have nearly enough space in this paper to address the full gamut of dangers multiculturalism creates, so instead I encourage you to research the topic yourself and learn about the problems this relativistic and decadent philosophy generates.   

As someone who is American and a Westerner, and proud of it, I want to preserve and celebrate our culture. I love the culture of the place I was born and raised, and importing many people from many opposing cultures not only puts us at risk for any antithetical practices these cultures have, but also dilutes our own culture. What’s wrong with appreciating your own culture and going to visit other countries in order to experience other cultures? Why does the West need to accept so many different cultures into it? We were able to exchange ideas and technologies for hundreds of years without needing millions of migrants from across the world to enter into the host nation.

If one thing can be certain about the consequences of multiculturalism, it’s that not only does it weaken and alter the culture of the Western world, it promotes the idea that every culture throughout humanity, whether it be that of an advanced and moralistic nation or a backward tribe of isolated people, is somehow equally valuable and in need of mixing. Well, I for one do not want the “cultural enrichment” of states such as Somalia, Syria, Iran, and the UAE. I do not want cultures that practice female genital mutilation, homosexual murder and female oppression to exist within my society. I hope the leaders of the Western world come to their senses soon and recognize the danger their moralistic grandstanding has created for their people because if this trend of cultural Marxism and multiculturalism continues, the Western world will lose so much of what makes it such a unique and incredible piece of humanity’s history.

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