Many Muslims are peaceful people. Only a tiny fraction of all Muslims are extremists. Image courtesy of faithandleadership.com

Don’t let history repeat itself.

They say that history holds the key to the future. Examining past behaviors of world leaders and civilians can help us recognize dangerous situations today.

One thing I am sick of hearing is, “It’s okay to be a little racist.” I have heard this from friends and family. With the holiday season in full swing, I am mentally preparing myself for some of the comments that will be made at the table.

Racism is alive and well in America. Islamophobia is a serious issue that needs to be discussed because it is actually becoming more of a problem.

There is one presidential candidate that is scaring me more than anyone else; Donald Trump.

Trump said in an interview that he would like all Muslims to carry some kind of identification to show their faith. Such identification isn’t the first time in history that this has been discussed or implemented. Adolf Hitler came to power in 1933 after he promised Germany a better life, away from its grim economy. Eventually the Nuremberg Laws were put into place in the mid-1930’s, which identified Jewish people with special marks on their IDs.

November 9, 1938 marked the Night of Broken Glass. This occurred when a German politician was shot by a Jewish person. After this occurred, Nazi party members damaged homes, businesses and places of worship belonging to Jewish citizens.

According to projectaladin.org, by the end of the Second World War, approximately sixmillion Jews were killed. This occurred in Germany due to centuries of antisemitism.

I agree with the sentiment that fear is the root of all evil.

This past weekend in Texas, an anti-Islam militia group gathered around an Islamic center in ‘protest.’ According to ibtimes.com, this group was brandishing guns while carrying U.S. flags.

I see this as a form of domestic terrorism. I would be very uncomfortable with a group waiting outside a place of faith with guns. Everyone should be able to practice their faith and live without fear in America, of all places.

There was one member of the group at the so called ‘protest’ who said, “I don’t want them shoving their beliefs down my throat.”

This is laughable because America is supposed to have religious freedom. According to the Washington Post,  post-Sept. 11 anti-Muslim hate crimes were five times more common.

I would like to add that along with these hate crimes, the Washington Post also indicated that Jewish people were victims of 60 percent of overall religious hate crimes.

It may be a bold statement to compare Donald Trump to Hitler, but I feel it is important to be aware of their commonalities. This is more than Donald Trump. This deals with structural racism in America.

Fear does strange things to people when unusual circumstances occur. Sometimes people point fingers at innocent groups of people out of fear, and that has been happening far too often in the United States as of late.

Living in the United States is becoming more disheartening for me now more than ever.

Becca Devine is a staff writer for The Dakota Student. She can be reached at [email protected]