It’s been a year now since the first Syrian refugees came trickling into Canadian airports – among them, the Shebat family here in Burnaby.
Perhaps now forgotten, the Syrian refugee crisis became a campaign issue in the 2015 federal election, with the major parties effectively trying to outbid each other for how many refugees Canada could or should accept.
We recall as well the naysayers urging the newly elected Liberal government to stop refugees at the border, spouting fears over terrorism, Sharia law and other nonsense. One of those prominent critics was Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall.
Today, just shy of 40,000 refugees have landed and started the toil of building a new life away from the bombs.
The fears over the safety of Canadians have proven to be bunk so far.
And we know now what the alternative would have been for those who fled. As civil war came to an end in Aleppo before Christmas, there were horrifying reports of government soldiers and pro-regime militias obliterating entire neighbourhoods, slaughtering women and children, as they cowered.
Other Syrians languish in refugee camps with no education, meagre shelter, no comforts, no future.
It hasn’t been easy for those who have arrived. There have been challenges finding access to language classes, education, jobs and housing. These can be tough things to acquire even for those who aren’t starting from scratch.
The federal government needs to ensure our compassion extends beyond the political campaign and the arrival of these new Canadians, and continue to make sure there are resources available to give them every chance of success.
We sincerely hope President Donald Trump’s move this week to block Syrian refugees from entering the United States does not colour Canada’s position. Trump is also suspending immigration for at least 30 days from a number of predominantly Muslim countries, including Iran, Iraq, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. Sadly, this will be applauded by many of his fellow Americans.
The Statue of Liberty in the U.S. has a phrase on it: “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-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door.”
Perhaps they should give the statue to Canada.
That would be the Canadian thing to do.
