Germany is going to take in 800,000 Syrian refugees. The U.S. is going to take in 8,000 Not good enough. https://t.co/q30gRZbOGF
— Christopher Hayes (@chrislhayes) September 3, 2015
Iceland recently announced it was willing to help with the growing humanitarian disaster in Syria that is sending Syrians fleeing for safety by the thousand to Turkey, Europe, and beyond. The Icelandic government offered to take 50 Syrian refugees in Iceland a country of some 330,000 people. As far as offers of help go, it didn’t come off as particularly heartfelt or overwhelming. In response to their government’s paltry offer, Icelanders stepped up to try to fill the humanitarian void. Spurred on by a plea from a leading Icelandic author, more than 10,000 people in Iceland offered to host Syrian refugees on a Facebook page called “Syria is calling.”
My first reaction when I read this story was thinking how unlikely it would be that Ted Cruz, Donald Trump, and the rest of America’s anti-immigration crowd would react in a similar manner. Iceland, a country with a population roughly equivalent to that of Riverside, CA, isn’t the first place you’d think of when looking to find a home for refugees from Syria…or anywhere else. The Icelandic government’s initial offer to take in 50 refugees is nothing if not representative of an abundance of caution, but it seems the people of Iceland have a much different idea, displaying a generosity of spirit all of us could learn something from.
At first glance, Iceland wouldn’t seem to be an ideal place for a Syrian refugee to wind up. The exceedingly homogenous population and the challenge to assimilate aside, there’s little opportunity available. Iceland is one of the most prosperous countries in Europe, but it’s not as if their economy is in a position to absorb a large number of newcomers looking for a new start. We’re talking about a country in which 64% of its land area is tundra. Something like 2/3 of Iceland’s population lives in and around Reykjavik. Still, the people of Iceland seem ready, able, and very willing to help. If they can do it….
“I’m happy to look after children, take them to kindergarten, school and wherever they need. I can cook for people and show them friendship and warmth. I can pay the airfare for one small family. I can contribute with my expertise and assist pregnant women with pre-natal care.”
“I have an extra room in a spacious apartment which I am more than happy to share along with my time and overall support.”….
“I’m a single mother with a 6-year-old son… We can take a child in need. I’m a teacher and would teach the child to speak, read and write Icelandic and adjust to Icelandic society. We have clothes, a bed, toys and everything a child needs. I would of course pay for the airplane ticket[.]”
There’s a lesson here for U.S. and the rest of Europe. Germany is taking in 800,000 refugees and the U.S. government has agreed to take in 8,000. To call our response not good enough would be something of an understatement. If a tiny country with limited resources can offer to open their hearts and their homes, perhaps it’s time those of us in more prosperous and economically diverse countries examine our motives and our hesitance to do more.
Iceland’s government has recognized the sentiments of its people and expressed a willingness to look at doing more than taking in 50 people. It’s time the rest of the West look at doing the same thing.
