The only thing to fear is still fear itself
Angela Merkel is not a candidate in the U. S. presidential election — she already has a steady job as chancellor of Germany — but she delivered a message Thursday that people in America and elsewhere ought to take to heart.
“Anxiety and fear cannot be a counsel for political action,” she said in making clear that a recent spate of violent attacks would not alter her government’s generous treatment of Middle East migrants and refugees. Her statement echoed a similar warning by Franklin D. Roosevelt at his first inauguration in 1933. “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself,” Roosevelt asserted as he took office at the absolute rock- bottom of the Great Depression.
America might be down, but it was far from out, he said at the time. “This great nation will endure as it has endured, will revive and will prosper.”
Whether deliberately emulating Roosevelt or not, Merkel’s comment was apt, timely and courageous. Compare it to the frenzied fear- mongering of the recent Republican Party convention, and it doesn’t require much reflection to conclude Germany has the more admirable leader.
It i s easy to denounce others, but it takes mettle to defend a policy against the sort of forces Merkel is facing. Germans are justifiably angry and unsettled over the violence that has shaken their country. Four attacks i n seven days: a knife and axe attack on 20 train passengers by a 17- year- old Afghan asylum seeker; a mass shooti ng i n Munich t hat saw nine people killed by the 18- year- old son of Iranian refugees; a machete attack by a 21- year- old Syrian that killed a pregnant woman; and a suicide bombing by a 27- year- old Syrian, in which 12 people and the bomber died.
An Afghan, two Syrians and the son of Iranians: it was inevitable that the identities of the attackers would stir demands for a curtailment of t he open- door policy Germany adopted toward the flood of people seeking safety from Middle East turmoil.
The violence has been mocked as Merkel’s “summer of slaughter.” A former ally denounced her “humanitarian narcissism.” Real fears exist that the attacks will fuel support for the extremist groups that have been gaining in strength across Europe and carry such a particular resonance in Germany.
Merkel stood her ground Thursday, insisting it would be wrong to reverse course now. Germany has been by far the most accommodating country in opening itself to applications from Syria, Iraq and other embattled countries, with more than a million arrivals since 2015. Thousands of rejected applicants remain in the country, and polls suggest Germans equate migrants with greater lawlessness.
Responding to pointed questions, Merkel maintained the open- door policy was the right thing to do.
“For me it is clear: we will stick to our fundamental principles,” she said. “These principles mean we will give asylum to those who are politically persecuted and we will give protection to those who flee war and expulsion.” A more restrictive policy could produce “even worse consequences.”
She acknowledged the policy has been exploited by the Islamic State of Iraq & the Levant, which has used it to smuggle terrorist forces into the country. They “wanted to undermine our sense of community, our openness and our willingness to help people in need,” she said, outlining a new nine- point plan to step up security and increase scrutiny of would-be migrants.
“We are being tested in the way we live. Our understanding of freedom and security is being tested . … We firmly reject this.”
The latest attacks have added to the strain on Merkel’s l eadership. She has been challenged from within her coalition government and by extremist parties on both right and left. Though the number of migrants fell sharply after she helped arrange a deal with Turkey to control departures, this month’s failed coup in Turkey may put the agreement in danger: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has already accused the European Union of failing to keep its end of the bargain, while EU leaders have questioned Erdogan’s draconian reaction to the attempted overthrow.
If any country understands the danger of demagogy and ethnic or religious intolerance, it’s Germany. Germans have every right to be alarmed and wary at the sudden strains they face. But Merkel is right in warning against overreaction, or a descent into narrowminded injustice and bigotry.
Giving in to fear was the worst danger in 1933, and remains so today.