Fleeing Terror, Finding Refuge By Paul Salopek

In “The Syrian Crisis, Explained in One Map,” an article by Zach Beauchamp, talks about the Syrian crisis that I’ve been going on for a while now. Syrian refugees are moving out of Syria and looking for a place to stay. They have been going to Europe, Eritrea, Iraq, Afghanistan, and many others. First of all, Beauchamp explains the largest population of Syrian refugees is in the middle east, often in vast and underfunded un-run refugee camps. This is a reason why they want to move out of their country and live a better life.

Refugees are people who are located all around the world as result of wars and persecutions in their home country, causing them to flee to find safer places to live. To expand upon, this group has been discriminated in the past by their religion, class, and or nationality by the majority of stable countries civilians due to the media forming false truths against them. Due to the ignorance of some civilians, they tend to act out on refugees who manage to acquire a spot in a country. For example, a young boy named Moatassem fled his home country Syria and found asylum in Lebanon but has been experiencing bullying and discrimination due to his race. A statement from Moatasem mother describing what her son has to go through to the news company World Vision entails,“Syrians are the most despicable people on earth.

The issue of if Syrian refugees should come to America is a big debate today. Everyone has different opinions when it comes to politics. In this essay I will discuss both sides and give my opinion about this matter.

Why should the United States not accept Syrian refugees? Not every Syrian is a terrorist, most of them really need help. Because of the civil war in Syria, a major genocide is happening. People are leaving their homes for a better life where they can be safe and economically stable. I think that the United States should accept Syrian refugees in because they have been dealing with inequality, they also have a good work ethic that at a lot of Americans do not have which can benefit the country, and the United States is a country where a lot of people migrate so why not let the Syrian refugees in since they need to.

The debate about letting Syrian Refugees into America has been a heavily debated topic in the last year. One surprising fact is that, ‘The third largest city in the country of Jordan, Za’atari is just a refugee camp filled with Syrians escaping the Syrian Civil War and the population of Za’atari of 90,000.’ Syrians should be let into our county because: we have been letting Syrian Refugees into our country a very few have been of them have been radicalized and carried out terrorist attacks on our country, U.S. states cannot legally reject and deport Syrian Refugees coming here to seek refuge without the approval of the federal government, and not all the Syrian Refugees fit the supposedly true stereotypes

Walter Kirn, an American novelist and literary critic, stated that ‘‘Everyone loves a witch hunt as long as it’s someone else’s witch being hunted.’’ (Web. Walter Kirn Quote) Although the Salem Witch Trials took place over 300 years ago, in 1692, and we claim that we have come a long way since then, the truth is we have not. The hysteria that took place during the witch trials occurred because people refused to take responsibility for their actions. The same thing is happening in modern day America due to a 4 year long civil war, in Syria, and a mounting war on terrorism, in the United States. Syrians are fleeing their country because of the impending civil war, of 4 years, between those loyal to President Bashar al-Assad and those who oppose him, the rebels. Accepting refugees from war torn countries has always been something the United States has done, even if it caused some controversy. However, there has never been more controversy on whether or not to accept refugees from Syria. This is because of the terrorist groups in Syria who have continued to execute fatal attacks on Westernized countries, specifically the United States. A number of U.S. citizens do not want to accept Syrian refugees for fear that some refugees could pose potential threats or have relations with the terrorist group, ISIS.

Four years ago, a civil war erupted in Syria after President Assad’s security forces fired into a group of peaceful protester, killing several of them (Syria), and starting a conflict that has rocked the stability of the world today. Now, as we go into the beginning of 2016, the world faces a refugee crisis unlike any other, and pressure is being put on many of the the world powers to give Syrian refugees a safe haven inside their countries. However, with taking in these refugees comes risk. America has always been a beacon for immigrants of all races and ethnicities for ages, but with the rise of a new terrorist group, with an obvious vendetta against America, the United States is having a difficult time determining whether or not it is safe to let these refugees into the country. Americans are faced with a decision. We can close ranks and turn helpless people away out of fear, leaving them to die or suffer some other unknown horrible fate, or we can put our fear aside and embrace these people with open yet cautious arms.

The issue of whether or not allowing the Syrian refugees continue to enter the United States have became a popular issue after the terrorist attack in Paris on November 13th. In my opinion, I think U.S should still remain allowing the Syrian refugees to start a new life in America. Following two reasons can best explain my point of view.

The utterly diminished and persistently conflicted regime of Bashar Al-Assad has led to several forces, including numerous rebel groups, Kurdish forces, and even ISIL to occupy the war-torn country of Syria in a seemingly never-ending ruination. Most importantly however, it has also led to millions of Syrians becoming dislodged between the remnant regions with the deaths of roughly half a million citizens, according to the Syrian Centre for Policy Research, from a civil war that originated due to a series of protests and differentiating ideologies. The situation has lead for surviving Syrians, now properly known as refugees, to seek asylum in neighboring countries in Europe, but even including some countries as far as in the Western Hemisphere, particularly the United States.

Thousands of Syrians are trying to escape their government and the terrorist group ISIS. Many wonder why we should let refugees in America, or why any country should allow them. But if Syrian’s cannot come to the land of the free, why should any foreigners come? Syrians have just as many reasons to be in America as anyone else. For example, the education, children’s hunger and freedom.

Many people believe that the United States should not let Syrian refugees into the United States to escape war would damage the country’s safety and way of life, but the U.S. should allow them in because it provides these immigrants such as humanitarian aid, safer families, a well- rounded education, and a strengthened workforce. As the Syrian Civil War rages, ISIS bombs the Middle East, and Russia targets airstrikes, thousands of Syrian refugees flee their home and country with their lives. Children cannot go to school and parents are running out of money. They need aid, but in the war-torn cities there is little help that these people can find. Separated from their jobs, livelihood, and families, they can

So, we should allow in Syrians, to reassure mankind that we have learned from our past, and we will stand up to protect the Syrians and others in need in the present. In the blog, “6 reasons to Welcome Syrian Refugees After Paris,” it states that The United States during World War II didn’t allow in Jews, since they wanted to protect their country. Then we had made a decision to stop bringing in the Jews. We sent them back, because we let fear overcome humanity. We have to stand up to the enemies harming our humanity, by helping those who need it. If we stop the Syrians from entering, we would be repeating history, and looking back at what we could’ve done to save the people in need. In, “Yes, the comparison between Jewish and Syrian refugees matters” it explains the similarities and difference of the Jewish and Syrian refugees. “The point here is that, in the 1930s, there most certainly was a question of Jews "fomenting" some sort of trouble. Jewish refugees with the similar kind of suspicion that's now on display in social media and from leading Republican politicians, who have issued loud calls to block arrivals of Syrian refugees. In the 1930s, we had doubted the Jews and their need for protection, but that only leads to complete destruction, with no help. Right now in the present, some people are calling off the admission of Syrian

Since 2011, Syria has been engaged in a Civil War with protestors against the government and members of the extremist group ISIS, and approximately 7.6 million people have been displaced from their homes (usnews.com 2015). As the conflict destroys more homes and livelihoods each year, an increasing number of civilians have been forced to leave Syria and try to find safety elsewhere. Already a contentious issue, the Syrian refugee crisis has awakened tensions, both economic and social as debate erupts over what to do with the refugees.In response to the crisis, while some countries like Germany have pledged to help the refugees, (New Statesman 2015 1) only 2,340 have been admitted. Clearly, more needs to be done in order to help the refugees. Although there are economic and population concerns to be considered, the humanitarian conflict that faces the refugees and solutions already available are reason enough for Europe to increase the numbers of Syrian refugees allowed in.

The Syrian refugee crisis has received massive media coverage. People around the world are trying to comprehend the desperate, complicated situation surrounding Syria. The civil war in Syria is the worst crisis in our time. Syrians upset at the fact that long promised reforms have not been enacted, began anti-government demonstrations which started the civil war in 2011. The peaceful protests turned ugly, with the government violently putting an end to those protests. Afterward, ordinary citizens took arms, causing the situation to escalate. Syrians are fleeing their homes because of the great violence, which have left thousands dead and millions wounded, a collapsed infrastructure, resulting in a shattered economy, and for the safety of the children. Syrians are either streaming to surrounding countries or risking their lives to travel to Europe.

In March of 2011, many Syrians complained about the economic issues in their country that resulted in “high unemployment, widespread corruption, and the lack of political freedom” as stated in an article written by BBC News. The Syrian government started to use force and violence to stop the protests, which escalated quickly and resulted in a civil war. The Civil War led many Syrian residents to be forced out of their own country in order to survive. Unlike many other refugees from other countries, these Syrian refugees do not