Syria: A Nation in Crisis
Horror. Terror. Desperation. Every waking moment in the life of a Syrian citizen is tainted by excruciating pain and worry. Parents worrying about the future and well-being of their children. Children worried about the safety of their families. Millions and millions of people, worrying about where they will go, now that the place they call home has been overrun by war and conflict. Every 15 seconds a Syrian citizen becomes a refugee, and another human being is torn from their home.
As part of a series of Arab Spring Uprisings, the Syrian civil war broke out in 2011. Originally the opposition to the government remained a peaceful matter in the form of nonviolent pro-democracy protests, with dissatisfied citizens expressing their upset at the failure of long-promised economic and political reforms. However, in April 2011 the Syrian Army fired on protesters and the demonstrations escalated into full-blown revolts. Today some 13.5 million Syrians have been displaced, with 6 million of these Syrians being children.
With many Syrian citizens fleeing the country in hopes of a better life elsewhere, a humanitarian crisis has erupted, and with so many starving, impoverished people, adequate funding for aide has become an issue. The trip to safe-haven countries such as Germany or the Netherlands is often a harrowing journey with lives lost along the way and families separated. If a displaced person were to survive the trip, they would then have to face the prospect of living in a refugee camp, with the journey towards a better life never seeming to end. Although such horrors seem far away from us here in America, the very least we can do is stay educated and pay attention, remaining empathetic and keeping the Syrian citizens and refugees in our thoughts and prayers.
