Thankful, day 17

I am thankful that we live in a stable place.

I see all this insanity about why our country (founded on the ideals of immigrants, escaping religious persecution, such as it is and was) should lock its doors against refugees from Syria. It breaks my heart. Why must people pretend that their fear is in the name of their god? Immigrants, refugees, are not terrorists, any more than the Protestants down the block are KKK members. Why do all the relief organizations seem to focus on faith and "godliness" when they could just focus on humanity? Why do we need to look to a god for the push to help? Why can't we just look in the mirror or at the pictures in the news and say "Dammit, I'm a person, you're a person, what can I do to help you, fellow human being?" rather than "NO! Why would you think about letting an ISIS member sleep on your couch?" (That is an actual comment I saw on a friend's Facebook status.)

This fearmongering has got to stop. I am happy and proud to live in a state that said "YES! COME HERE!" but at the same time, I am heartbroken that our state actually had to stand up and say something. I understand that the homeless and broken of our own nation need help too. But, though I hate to look at it this way, things aren't changing for them much. The refugees? They have left their homes and their countrymen and their neighbors. They have lost family members and friends. They are running scared in the hopes of finding safety. Every day for them is a new reality where they may not even speak the language and they rely 100% on the kindness of strangers to help them survive.

I guess what I am saying is that anyone crying out against letting refugees seek asylum here in the safety of our nation is GO LOOK IN A MIRROR. If there is a human being staring back at you, then help your fellow humans. They are not terrorists. They have already faced the fear of the unknown to escape the terror they know. Open your hearts, and if you can, open your homes. If you can't donate money, send positive prayers and love their way. Love your fellow humans. And FFS, Thanksgiving is next week. I cannot think of a more appropriate time of year to remember and celebrate the bond that joins ALL HUMANS in need than a time to give thanks for what we have and how we survived what we left behind.