Europe & Russia

Thirty-eight European governments harassed religious groups in limited or widespread ways in 2015, while 24 used some type of force against religious groups.

Government restrictions on religion and social hostilities involving religion increased in 2015 for the first time in three years. Government harassment and use of force surged in Europe, as did social hostilities against Muslims.

Though Christians make up nearly a third of Earth’s 7.3 billion people, the number of Christians in Europe is in decline.

More babies were born to Christian mothers than to members of any other religion in recent years. Less than 20 years from now, however, the number of babies born to Muslims is expected to modestly exceed births to Christians.

In 2016, European Union countries, Norway and Switzerland received more than 1.2 million asylum applications, below the record 1.3 million applications received in 2015.

In a number of countries, younger people are more likely than their elders to take an inclusive view of what it takes for people to be truly “one of us.”

American students continue to rank around the middle of the pack, and behind many other advanced industrial nations, in international assessments of math, science and reading.

Of the 84,995 refugees admitted to the United States in fiscal year 2016, the largest numbers came from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Syria, Burma (Myanmar) and Iraq.

In a number of countries, people place a low premium on the importance of being native born to national identity. However, many
say speaking the dominant language and sharing customs is important to "truly" be considered a national.