Spray Paint is Deadly!

Fun fact: the Haiti earthquake, Hurricane Katrina and the Indian Ocean Tsunami combined does not even reach the amount of people affected by the Syria crisis.

It’s quite surprising what a little paint can do. There were 15 schoolchildren who wrote anti-government graffiti on a wall. They definitely paid for it; they were arrested and tortured. Then the protests arrived after that, but they were peaceful protests for the release of the children, more freedom and democracy, yet the army opened fire on the protesters, killing 4 people. Isn’t that horrifying, that the government reacts in such a violent way to a peaceful act? The government still wasn’t done. One mourner was killed at the funeral of a protester. This was not just some rare occurrence now, and the people were shocked at the string of events that had happened. They demanded for the resignation of President Bashar al-Assad, but he refused, thus leading to a brutal civil war, with ISIS trickling in and chaos surrounding the citizens.

Violence increased, so obviously, people fled. Some Syrians were able to get refuge, but there wasn’t always enough resources, and things didn’t get better for them. Many weren’t prepared for a crisis on this scale. However, one thing I wish would change is that more people try to help, since some places can handle it, and everyone can still help to contribute in solving this crisis. Half of the Syrians are children, their childhood tarnished, the place they called home in ruins, experiencing violence, and lost so much. Still, though, many places withdraw their support, thinking about the good for their area, but not the refugees that just want safety, and the ones that had everything taken from them. Some places also need to start stepping up. Little Jordan has already taken in about 600,000 refugees, meanwhile the UK, with far more money than Jordan has, only takes in 20,000… over the next 5 years, that is.  But, if we are willing and united, can we take on this crisis, and more importantly, do you think we can one day bring a long time of peace to the middle east? How would you accomplish this task?