Peter Farb Quotes

This quotation was a comment on the Donald Trump Ban on Muslim Travel to the US from 7 Islamic countries. Trump, when campaigning for the Presidency, was masterful in appealing to the nativist inclined people of both political parties. He had promised to ban all Muslims from entering the country. When he got elected, he issued an executive order banning Muslims from 7 countries from U.S. entry, There had been a substnatial number of Americans killed by Islamic Terrorists in 9-11 and other acts, and this was the rathional for the Muslim ban. However, of the Americans who had been killed or wounded by Muslim visitors, none of them had been killed by any from the 7 countries that were banned. Thousands had been killed by Islamic terrorists from Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Pakistan, Yet there was no ban on those coutnries. The problem did not exist in the countries that were banned. The Trump motive for this irrational Executive order has never been clear but many thought that he felt he had to look like he was keeping his campaign pledge, and since we did much business with the 3 nations from which the terrorists actually came, while the 7 counties he banned had little or no economic impact on the United States, Some critics ascribed the decision to the fact that Trump personally had substantial business ventures in all of the 3 countries that had produced and on many ways supported the terrorists, but he had no business interests in teh 7 countries upon which he placed the ban. Unlike otehr post 19th century Presidents, Trump refused to divest his ownership of his busineeses, and even refused to place them in a blind trust. A few days after the Executive Order was put into effect, a Federal Judge issues an injuunction to cease enforcing the order until the issue of unConstitutional religious discrimination could be heard. He ruled that there was irreparal harm and the Attorney General of Washinton State who filed the suit was likely to prevail.

The congressman was distraught with the national immigration picture at that time. He believed that the influx of Hispanic immigrants into the United States would radically change the culture and the immigrant culture would then predominate. Throughout American history with every wave of immigration, there have been fears expressed about the culture of America. The Irish immigration, the Scandinavians, the Germans, Italians, Jews, the Chinese—all engendered fear that they would “take over” and radically change the country. The reality is that none of them took over but all made some changes and influenced cultural direction of the nation. The congressman was repeating an old refrain.

He was also anti-Semitic and biased against most foreigners. Lindbergh, a great aviator, was a Fascist who was a great admirer and supporter of Hitler and Mussolini.

Iqbal was one of the leading Islamic reformers and modernists. This observation was made amidst an Islamic debate over Muslim decay. It scandalized the fundamentalists then and although he is a great Islamic figure, it is not popular to argue for this position even today.

Most people are very surprised that the great Benjamin Franklin was so narrow-minded at one point in his life. The German immigration almost halted during the Seven Years War, and the influx of Germans to Pennsylvania did not resume at the same rate.

African Americans have developed their own unique culture, customs and even language which has been shaped In large part by slavery and living under Jim Crow. Foreign Blacks find that culture very foreign, having never experienced it. They were shaped by colonialism and and are familiar with white, Western, Christian culture. In addition a large proportion of African and Caribbean immigrant have been highly educated, professional trained, and or middle class. Also, the media stereotyping of American Blacks not only biases whites, but aslo biases foreigners of all ethnicities. So Black immigratnts frequently perceive American Blacks to be lower class, prone to crime and violence, uneducated and different from the and certainly from their aspirations." African Americans have developed their own unique culture, customs and even language which has been shaped in large part by slavery and living under Jim Crow. Foreign Blacks find that culture very foreign, having never experienced it. They were shaped by colonialism and and are familiar with white, Western, Christian culture. In addition a large proportion of African and Caribbean immigrant have been highly educated, professional trained, and or middle class. Also, the media stereotyping of American Blacks not only biases whites, but aslo biases foreigners of all ethnicities. So Black immigratnts frequently perceive American Blacks to be lower class, prone to crime and violence, uneducated and different from them and certainly from their aspirations.

This statement was made before the violent Islamic reaction to the Danish private newspaper publication of anti-Muslim cartoons depicting the Islamic Prophet—which most Islamic tradition forbids although there is no prohibition against it in the Islamic holy texts.

This quotation became a very polarizing stimulus in the country with anti-immigration people using it in support of their program to restrict immigration and with liberals and Hispanic groups who saw the quotation as a discriminatory unfounded charge.

Most immigration reformers want to open immigration more widely. Ward wanted immigration restricted to certain ethnicities and limited.

As in most weak economic times there were more people than usual opposed to immigration. Of the opponents of immigration some were not racist, but a large number were very much racist. Also the racist organizations all opposed immigration. Historically almost all anti-immigration movements were racist. First it was against the Irish, then the Germans, followed by Chinese, Japanese, Italians, Eastern European Jews, and at the time of this quote it was against the Mexicans and other Hispanics.