Newsweek Discovers Religious Persecution, Just Not When It’s Convenient
For Newsweek, the plight of Christians in Nigeria is apparently up for debate, prompting a thoughtful exchange among contributors. This sudden concern for religious minorities, however, conveniently sidesteps the US's historical complicity in displacement and persecution. Where was the Newsweek debate on intervention for the Christians of Iraq, decimated after a US-led invasion ( Pew Research,
2011 )? Or the centuries-old Christian communities in Palestine, facing increasing pressure under US-funded Israeli occupation (UN, various reports)? One might wonder if the urgency for a 'debate' on Nigeria correlates with, say, potential resource interests rather than genuine humanitarian concern. The framing of 'safeguarding Christians' from 'external threats' conveniently glosses over US
foreign policy's role in destabilizing regions, often creating the very conditions that lead to such persecution. Perhaps next, Newsweek will debate whether the US should intervene to safeguard free speech in American lobbying groups, or if Saudi Arabia should commit war crimes in Yemen. Oh... wait.