World View

Muslims in Western Europe

Currently, Western Europe has a Muslim population of 10 to 12 million. Most of these people were brought to Europe from Africa and Asia as workers in the 1950’s and 1960’s to meet the labor shortages of the booming postwar West European economies. Today, the Muslim populations of Europe have grown exponentially, comprised not only of immigrants, but also of refugees seeking political or humanitarian asylum, or economic betterment.

The Muslim population of France, for example, is more than 4 million, about the same population as the entire state of Kentucky. Germany hosts 3 million Muslims and Italy, Belgium and the Netherlands have about a half-million each. Britain houses more than 1.5 million. In fact, fifty-two percent of the population of London is non-British. One out of 20 people in London is a refugee. The largest refugee population coming in is from Iraq. Just last summer alone 4,300 Iraqi refuges entered England. Other countries represented in London include Somalia, Afghanistan, Iran, and Turkey.

Life for Muslim immigrants varies from one Western European country to the next. One can only imagine what it would be like to leave your entire life behind and flee to another country in search of a better life. Imagine moving to a place where you don’t speak the language, you don’t have much money and you’re not sure where you will get your next meal. The living conditions can be tense, as well. In many refugee camps, there are completely diverse peoples from all over the world put in one condensed area to live. This produces great tensions among people whose native countries might be at war.

In some countries, immigrants live in dorm-like conditions for up to three months waiting to find out whether or not they will be offered citizenship into their new country. In other countries, immigrants have been living in refugee camps for years, wondering when their life is going to get better.

Much debate is taking place now as to whether Muslims will, over time, assimilate into the culture of Western Europe. Some say that when people from different cultural backgrounds come in contact with one another, their different lifestyles, value and beliefs begin to mingle. Many Muslims have, so far, resisted assimilation into the Western European cultures and mostly socialize among fellow Muslims. Only about 3 percent of Muslim youth marry non-Muslims in Britain, for example. That percentage appears somewhat higher in France and Germany, but not by much.

Either way, says Muhammad Anwar, professor of ethnic and racial studies at the University of Warwick in England, “Muslims will remain a distinct layer in the social makeup of Europe.”