World Refugee Day

Would you believe - I was just doing an unrelated search and saw the note on Google that this is World Refugee Day.  So I absolutely have to get out a quick post.  With the curent bigoted political climate, which more than likely led to the murder of UK MP Jo Cox, we need to remembe that, in the U. S. at least, we're a nation of immigrants.  And when I hear someone disparaging 'economic refugees' I think they need reminding that most Europeans came to what is now the U. S. to better their lives.  There is a very ugly political atomphere here in the U. S. and the U. N. High Commissinoer for Refugees recently spoke of the 'climate of xenophobia' gripping Europe.

The theme this year is "We Stand Together With Refugees."  Let's hope many of us do just that.

Here is a poem which I originally posted back in November 2015.  It's appropos again now.

Reminder Needed

We forget that we are a country of immigrants
That many hands of diverse ancestry built this country
And continue to do so
It seems we forget when someone whispers, "The terrorists are coming."

 We forget things such as "Chinese Exclusion", 
The stain of Japanese incarceration,
Those against admitting Jewish refugees from the Holocaust
Have we not learned from our history?
But it seems we forget if someone intones, "The terror threat is high."

 We forget that we face risks everyday
We forget that liberty should not be sacrificed for security
But it seems civil liberties and even common sense
Seem to be discarded if someone pronounces, "We just want to keep you safe."

 We forget, but there's a certain statue in New York harbor
Which should be a reminder to us
She stands as a token of friendship and a beacon of liberty
So will we stand with her?

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