If that series of tubes called the Internet is to be believed, President Obama is bringing 80,000 Muslim refugees into the United States to take our welfare and convert our children to Islam.  Never mind that most of the 80,000 refugees authorized to come here in FY 2011 are not from Muslim countries or that the refugee admissions numbers are consistent with those of President Bush’s administration (and lower than during President Clinton and the first President Bush’s terms).

But unfortunately, the internet is not about facts.  From his website, The Last Crusade, Paul L. Williams, Ph.D.–and he never forgets to include those three little letters after his name–screams: “Get ready for the new Muslim invasion!”  Mr.–excuse me, Dr.–Williams informs us:

President Barack Hussein Obama, in a determination letter to Congress, has announced that he will allow an additional 80,000 immigrants – – mostly from Islamic countries – – to resettle in the United States during fiscal year 2011.

OK, part of this statement is true.  Just like the presidents before him, President Obama has sent a proposal to Congress about refugee admissions for the current fiscal year.  In that proposal, the President suggests a ceiling of 80,000 refugees who can be admitted into the United States.  The number of potential refugee admissions are divided by region as follows:

What’s false–and offensive–is Dr. Williams’s claim that the 80,000 refugees are “mostly from Islamic countries.”  This claim is false because the President’s designation does not refer to specific countries.  Rather, the designation refers to regions.  Only after needs are assessed will we know how many refugees each country will produce.  During FY 2009 (the last year I see data available), the largest groups of refugees have come from the following countries (I have listed only countries with over 1,000 refugees; for the entire list, see page 57 of the Proposed Refugee Admissions):

These countries account for over 90% of refugee admissions for FY 2009 and most–about 60%–of these refugees are not from “Islamic” countries.  Further, even the refugees from majority Muslim countries are not necessarily Muslim.  Many refugees from Iraq and Eritrea, for example, are Christians.  So Dr. Williams’s claim about a Muslim “invasion” is patently false. 

What is so offensive about Dr. Williams’s canard is his implication that something is wrong with Muslim refugees (and Muslims in general).  To Dr. Williams, we are at war with Muslims, and anything we do to help a Muslim only hurts “us.”  He conveniently disregards our Muslim allies in the war on terror, or our own Muslim soldiers who risk their lives defending our country.  But hatred and bigotry rarely concerns itself with truth, and to Dr. Williams, the vulnerable Muslim refugees coming to our country are an invading army.  Better we should let them die in refugee camps.  And why not leave the non-Muslim refugees to die as well, for there might be Muslims among them.  To Dr. Williams, we live in an “us” vs. “them” world, where helping refugees–an act of compassion and humanity–is viewed as an act of treason.

Unfortunately, Dr. William’s lie has made its way around the internet as truth, and has been re-posted on many blogs.  People who hate Muslims and who hate President Obama seem ready to believe anything that fits their paradigm, regardless of the facts.  It’s a shame that refugees–some of the most vulnerable people on earth–are exploited by hate mongers like Dr. Williams, Ph.D.  You’d think an educated person would know better.