Published December 18, 2015
Editorial by Winston-Salem Journal, December 17, 2015.
U.S. Sen. Richard Burr of Winston-Salem was right to reject Donald Trump’s call for a conditional ban on Muslims entering the U.S. Such a ban would be counterproductive and wrong.
Speaking on “Face the Nation” Sunday, the Republican pointed to instances of Muslim cooperation and devotion to shared U.S. interests, the Journal’s Bertrand M. Gutierrez reported Monday.
“In Iraq, we had Iraqi interpreters that served with U.S. troops. In Afghanistan — the same,” Burr said on the show.
“Many of them lost their lives or were injured. Out of the last five coalition battles around the world … only three countries have been at our side every step of the way. One of them was the United Arab Emirates. How do you tell the Bahraini pilots that fly, the Saudi pilots that fly, and the Emirate pilots: ‘You’re good enough to fight against ISIL, but you’re not good enough to come in the United States’? Huge mistake.”
He added, “And I think that this sends the wrong message to people that have to be part of our partnership for a solution.”
Burr, the proud son of a Presbyterian pastor, joined other Republicans and many Democrats who have denounced Trump’s stance.
Burr, the chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, is no softie. Speaking on the same show about the mass shooting in San Bernardino, he made it clear that he intends to hold Muslim lawbreakers accountable:
“We want to look at how our immigration process for a visa for a spouse broke down — that they didn’t notice the radicalization. And, more importantly, what we’ve got to know is who they might have had conversations with relative to their planning, access to the weapons.
“They didn’t just overnight learn how to make 19 pipe bombs.”
We realize there’s a lot of fear and uncertainty associated with Muslims, but it’s out of proportion to reality. Most Muslims in North Carolina and elsewhere in America are harmless and, in fact, inspired to do good by their religion.
Unfortunately, fear and misinformation has fed a violent backlash against Muslims in some places that should shame us.
Some seem motivated to define exactly why Islam is fundamentally different from other religions and why American Muslims should be denied their constitutional rights. These same tactics have been tried in times past on Jews, Catholics, Mormons and other groups They’re never justified. One of America’s bedrock principles is religious freedom, and that means religious freedom for everybody.
We call on all political and religious leaders to set an example, like Burr: to condemn violence toward Muslims and encourage understanding.
Some Muslim beliefs and practices may be different and even objectionable to mainstream Christians, but one needn’t agree with them to realize that, as Americans, we all have the same rights and we’re stronger when we support those rights for each other. That’s the American way.
December 18, 2015 at 11:26 am
Bennie Lee says:
You are wrong and so is Burr.
Burr is looking out for reelection and only reelection.
