Syrian Refugees – “My Canada” Opens the Door

 My ancestors have been in Canada for generations.  I am 4^th generation Canadian on my Father’s side and perhaps even longer with my maternal family.  We come from England, Scotland and Ireland.  My people were not refugees.  They were not running for their lives when they had the opportunity to make Canada their home, where they could create a prosperous future for themselves and future generations.

I am sure life in the UK would have been lovely.  But I KNOW that life in Canada is a blessing and I am so grateful to be here raising my children in this “true north – strong and free”.  As I sit in the comfort of my home, warm, with a full tummy, no fear of bombs falling on us – I watch news reports of Syrian refugees.  I have read news media reports, social media opinions, and heard family and friends discuss their thoughts – some very passionately.  As with most things in my life, my gut knew what my position was – and the more I research, listen and let my heart brew the information, the stronger my position becomes.

Canada must do their part to support and welcome

refugees from Syria and other war torn countries.

I don’t say this because of the tears on my face as I watch accounts of dead bodies washing up on the shore of Turkey.  I haven’t left my intelligence and rational thoughts behind to have a bleeding heart.  My heart bleeds when I hear what the arguments are to keep them out.  Some have fear they are terrorists.  I have heard “they will take our jobs”, “taxes will go up” to pay for the investment, if more people of different religions come to Canada “they could outnumber us”, “we are being taken over”.  “Our traditions will change.” None of these fears justify letting people die when we can help.

Humans of New York

My rebuttal: 

I won’t support denying refugees for fear there might be a bad apple in the bunch.  There probably will be – odds are someone might break the law.  The same is true of people born in Canada.  If a terrorist wants to get into Canada, they can do it much easier than the paths the refugees have had to take to get here.

I hope we do have more people here taking and making jobs.  We have more seniors in Canada than we have children to grow up and work to fund our social programs through taxes.  Those seniors are likely to live longer and be a greater draw on health-care resources that are already stretched thin.  We need more young people in Canada to generate future taxpayers – why not young people who know what it is to work hard fighting for an opportunity to be prosperous??!!

Our traditions WILL change.  There will be more traditions to celebrate and learn from.  My own Christian beliefs are true and strong enough to remain mine.  The only ‘danger’ of learning details of other religions and cultures is that we might actually remove fear caused by ignorance.  We already live in a country that is a melting pot of cultures and religions.  It is that very mix that makes us strong.

I am not a politician, scholar or news reporter.  I am not an expert in foreign affairs. I am your average Canadian citizen – who refuses to be a sheep to fear mongers while there are human beings that could be helped by my empathy and tax dollars.

If you still feel your fears justify keeping refugees out of Canada – ask yourself this: 

What would you do if you saw a child running from bombs?  Would you block their path to safety to discuss if they might grow up to break the law or have different religious practices – or would you open the door, put your arms around them and welcome them to their future in the greatest country on Earth?