America’s Ban on Syrian Refugees

Written 6/28/2017

“Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”

The Statue of Liberty, built in 1875 to honor freedom and democracy in the United States, perfectly describes the ethical standards this country was founded on. The first people to travel to America and build a new foundation did so to escape persecution and injustice. Why is it that in this day and age, America is rejecting people who are looking for that same freedom and liberty?

Syria is currently undergoing the largest humanitarian crisis in the world. The Syrian war has been going on for the last 6 years and as a result, more than half of their population (11 million people) have been displaced from their homes. These people have either left their homes by force or to avoid the turmoil and danger of the war. About 386,000 people have died already, 14,000 of those being children. The Syrians don’t necessarily want to leave their homes and their country, they simply don’t have a choice. Considering the large amount of refugees fleeing Syria, it has been difficult for them all to find new places to go.

On January 27^th, 2017, President Trump signed an executive order banning Syrian refugees from entering the United States indefinitely. This order was founded on the desire for more effective national security. It closes our doors to refugees from 8 countries: Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen. Dara Lind[1] says, “The new refugee policy is based on the idea that there might be a ‘right side’ and a ‘wrong side’ in Syria but it’s not the US’s obligation to find out which side you’re on, or to protect you if you’re on the right side”. So then who’s obligation is it? The only way to get through this worldwide crisis with minimum casualties is for everyone to do what they can. Canada has resettled over twice as many Syrian refugees than the United States has, despite having a population one-tenth the size of the United States. Trump’s executive ban took America’s refugee quota to less than half of the level his predecessor, President Obama, set. Over the past few years, the United States has stepped back instead of stepping up to the cry for help from refugees, specifically in Syria.

There are two ethical issues with the refugee ban. The first issue is the Religious Minorities Exception in the executive order. This states that religious minorities (In Syria, Christians) will be given preference in the citizenship process. Putting the people of one religion above another in such a way violates the religious freedom rights outlined in the first amendment, one of the very core values of American society. The second issue is that people can’t help where they are born, and if America bans people just because of something they can’t control, these people could end up stuck in a place where they are being killed and abused right and left. This country was founded on a policy of promised freedom and open doors, and therefore, it is unconstitutional for the United States to keep Syrian refugees out.

The question the United States is asking itself today is: Is this our problem, and is it our place to help?

[1] https://www.vox.com/2017/1/27/14370854/trump-refugee-ban-order-muslim