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Muslims in Europe: a Short Introduction Justin Vaisse US – EUROPE ANALYSIS SERIES September 2008 Muslims in Europe: A short introduction Justin Vaisse This paper aims to briefly present the basic Eastern Europeans moving west", even though facts and issues concerning Muslims in Europe, a) not all of the migrants from this region are from a political and sociological perspective, Muslims, b) "Eastern Europeans" would never be and to offer elements of comparison with the labeled "Orthodox" or "Catholics", and c) that is US.1 There will be a slight emphasis on France, not the issue anyway, since the article is about due to author's area of specialty – and to the immigration. For a couple of weeks in fact that France is home to the largest Muslim November 2005, the media used the term population in Europe. "Muslims riots in France" to describe the wave of urban violence that resulted in burnt cars and property damage. But these riots had nothing ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Justin Vaisse is a to do with Islam, and everything to do with the Senior Fellow in the Center on the social and economic conditions of largely United States and Europe at the immigrant communities. Muslim groups, who Brookings Institution. tried to play a mediating role, discovered themselves to be irrelevant and powerless. A few popular myths about Islam in Europe Myth #2: Muslims in Europe are, in one way or should first be dispelled, in order to grasp the the other, inherently foreign, the equivalent of real issues and challenges: visiting Middle-Easterners who are alien to the "native" culture. Myth #1: Being Muslim constitutes a fixed identity, sufficient to fully characterize a person. European culture, however, has always th included Muslim elements, as early as the 8 When it comes to Muslims, people wrongly century. Moreover, the approximately 15 to assume that religion – rather than nationality, 17 million persons of Muslim background gender, social class, etc. – necessarily trumps currently in the EU-27 countries (population: 500 other identities. To take just a few examples, million) include both citizens and non-citizens of the Washington Post, in an article on migration European member states, but a majority of to the EU (June 2008), writes about "Muslims them hold French, British, German, etc. arriving from the Middle East and Africa, and nationality. Many of them are proud of this fact and would never think of themselves as anything else than Europeans (even while 1 This paper was presented at the Aspen Institute honoring their heritage). Indeed, there is more Congressional Program’s conference on "Islam: difference in political culture and social codes Governance and Ideology and US Policy", Paris, between a French Muslim and a German August 17-23, 2008. US – EUROPE ANALYSIS SERIES 1 Muslim than there is between a French Muslim rates are comparable to that observed in the and a French of other religious orientation. US, around 2 children per woman. Last but not least, immigration to the EU is more and more Myth #3: Muslims in Europe form a "distinct, tightly controlled. It is doubtful that from about cohesive and bitter group," in the words of a 15-17 million in the 500 million EU-27 today (3 to 2005 Foreign Affairs article. 4 %), potential Muslims could number more than 6 % in the coming decades. In reality, they are anything but a cohesive group. Not only is there no unity to be found at The European Patchwork the European level, but when one looks at the national level, what predominates is the Although European Muslims share many profound divisions, either between countries of common issues and challenges, a pan- reference and their specific culture and brand European view is largely misleading. In Italy, the of Islam (e.g., Belgians of Turkish origin vs. "immigrant character" of Islam has been Belgians of Moroccan origin), between visions stressed in the Consulta Islamica (the dialogue of religion and affiliation (e.g., German Turks of the State with Muslims which started in 2005), associated with Milli Görüş vs. those affiliated and Denmark has faced specific problems with with Diyanet), or between social status, political a very recent settlement of Muslims. Countries views, ethnicity, etc. In other words, to speak of like Spain, by contrast, where the Comisión "a Muslim community" is simply misleading. Islamica de España defines Islam as one of the spiritual faiths rooted in Spanish history, or Myth #4: Muslims are demographically gaining France – where the colonial past led to early on the "native" population. exchanges and the construction of a grand mosque in central Paris as early as 1926 – see The implicit assumption behind this very Islam as part of their history. widespread myth is that Muslims form a distinct demographic bloc defined by religion, a bloc The main differences between EU countries, by which will never blend into the rest of society decreasing order of importance, have to do (another possible assumption is based on with: ethnicity, "Muslims" being surrogate for "people of color" vs. white people). This assumption is 1) The institutions and political philosophy contradicted by the significant rates of of each country, especially as they intermarriage and conversions (in both relate to religion, the proper role of directions) and, more importantly, by the reality minorities, and multiculturalism; of integration in many countries, where Muslims are simply patriotic, law-abiding citizens – in this 2) The country of origin, or country of case, worries about demography have no reference (for the children and grand- basis, why would one count them apart? But children of immigrants), of Muslims; even accepting the assumption they are a demographic bloc, "Muslims" are not actually 3) The history of Muslim presence, and its significantly gaining on "natives." True, modalities ("guest workers", refugees, European birthrates are generally low, and immigrants, converts, etc.), as well as birthrates among immigrant groups are often the links of each country with the past high. But in the latter group, they actually fall (colonial tradition or not); rapidly after their arrival and among subsequent generations, as they tend to 4) The number of Muslims relative to the conform to the national norm. And in some general population, and their countries like France or Ireland, general fertility geographical concentration. US – EUROPE ANALYSIS SERIES 2 Before offering a brief snapshot of major Turkish citizens. The proximity of Turkey, the European countries, it should be noted that the "guest worker program" of the 1960's and early EU (Brussels) level is not relevant to deal with 1970's which intended to provide a temporary this issue, as the status of religions remains one surge of workers for German industry, and the of national competence. However, the ethno-cultural vision of German citizenship, regional or local level often plays a key role, have combined to create a blocked situation with some German Länder, for example, being up until the 1990's, as well as a dominance of very active in their integration policies (like Turkish religious authorities (the Diyanet, Rhineland-Westphalia, where more than a third through the German DITIB) on German Islam. of all Muslims in Germany live), or some The reform of 2000, granting citizenship to most municipalities of the same country taking of those born in Germany, and the launching opposing approaches (Rotterdam is financing of a consultation process, the Deutsche Islam Islamic education in its public schools, while Konferenz (DIK) in 2006, have eased things Utrecht opposes it). somewhat. But there is persistent debate over German identity. This finds expression within the France, with 5 million potential Muslims (8 % of programs of the CDU and CSU parties, and also the population), originating from Algeria, in the DIK process itself, which often blurs the Morocco, and to a lesser extent Turkey, Tunisia distinctions between religious, social and and sub-Saharan Africa, is home to a third of security issues. While Islam is still not an officially EU Muslims. A strict separation of church and established church (corporation) like others, it state (laïcité) began in 1905 after very painful does enjoy some public privileges – such as tensions, many of which have been religious education in public schools – in some reactivated in the recent decades about of the Länder. Islam. The debates surrounding the headscarf issue and the 2004 law banning religious signs in The United Kingdom is home to 1.5 to 2 million public schools are a good example. The Muslims (around 3 % of the population), most of government heavy-handedly helped set up a them originating in South Asia, particularly French Council for the Muslim religion (CFCM in Pakistan. After 9/11, and especially after 7/7 French) in 2003, which represents Muslims for (the homegrown Islamist bombings of July 7, exclusively religious matters – as the French 2005), the UK has tended, along with the republican vision of citizenship bans the Netherlands, to veer away from a permissive recognition of separate (minority) identities in multicultural environment, where even the public sphere. Given the challenges, extremist preachers enjoyed extensive France has been mostly successful at religious freedoms – "Londonistan" – to a set of policies and cultural integration, as well as monitoring stressing a common British identity and the and preventing radicalization (it has the need for the government to become more strongest anti-terrorism apparatus), but it has intrusive in Muslim education, the monitoring of largely failed at social and economic mosques, etc. One of the results of the integration of migrants (and their children and interventionist "Preventing Extremism Together" grand-children), whatever their faith, as the (PET) process launched after 7/7 has been the urban violence of November 2005 and more establishment of the MINAB (Mosques and recent flare-ups, attest.
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