A few years back, I had the
privilege of employing some Bhutanese refugees from Nepal. These women had
literally grown up in refugee camps after fleeing the violence and persecution
of the supposedly peaceful buddhist regime of Bhutan. The regime and their supporters did not accept the cultural
and religious differences of the Hindus who lived in the southern regions.
Their prejudice led to intolerance, which then led to discrimination, then
violence and finally resulted in them being driven from their homes and farms,
many beaten and even killed. They fled to neighboring Nepal, where they were
allowed set up refugee camps.
Now, when I say camps, you should
know that these were not lovely tents with running water and air conditioning
or heat. They literally lived in mud huts of their own making and went into the
forest to hunt and forage for food. They and their parents were in the camps so
long because the Nepalese government refused to offer them citizenship and the
international community debated and argued for years before Canada and the US
stepped up to take them. Even then, the process was extremely slow and arduous
and in the end, those who were able to work here had to come first and then
pave the way to bring their elderly parents, all the while, hoping that they
would be able to jump through all the right hoops and earn enough money before
time ran out and one or both of their parents died in the camps.
What many people don't know about
refugees who come to the United States, aside from the arduous screening
process, and I certainly didn't realize until I came to know these women, is
that in many cases, even the charities (in their specific case a Christian
charity) require REPAYMENT of most or all of the relocation fees such as
airfare (which is not discounted and in most cases as much as a first class
ticket). This meant that each of them, husbands, wives, and children, began
their new life in the U.S. with a substantial debt over their heads of
thousands of dollars and in many cases, tens of thousands of dollars. In this
case, the husbands were employed by Goodwill for minimum wage and I'm sorry to
say, sometimes taken advantage of from a labor perspective because of their
poor understanding of labor laws and their genuine and deep fear of making any
waves and being sent back. (As a side note, they initially attempted to buy
some things at Goodwill, until the supervisors there arbitrarily decided to
make a new "rule" that employees AND THEIR FAMILIES were not allowed,
EVEN IN THEIR OFF HOURS, to shop at the store. This resulted in me going in
"undercover" to purchase things for their homes based on their
descriptions.)
My friends were placed in the
same housing complex as five other refugee families, 30 miles northwest of
where a much larger group of I believe about 6,000 were living in Decatur,
Georgia. They lived in an
impoverished and crime ridden area of town--the police were called to their
apartment complex on a daily basis for guns, knife fights, drug busts, etc., but
they were grateful for having an actual roof and running water and they never
complained. Again, I can not stress enough the very real fear they had of
making "trouble" and being sent back. They were always aware that
their being here was conditional and despite my attempting to explain to them
that they too had rights, they were guided by this fear.
The families worked diligently to
make their tiny apartments homey and as nice as possible with the small amount
of money they had. They laid inexpensive bamboo mats all over the carpets,
which they were not used to and did not like. They gathered together nightly,
on weekends and cultural holidays for tea and meals, and shared any and all
resources to help one another survive, watching each other's children, buying
groceries in bulk together, sharing one car amongst five families, the list
goes on. Through it all they were always thankful--so thankful--constantly
bringing me and others who helped them little gifts of food or apologizing for
any perceived burden they imagined they had caused.
I could tell you many things
about these people and how knowing them, becoming close to them, was one of the
most powerful human experiences I have had the honor to have had, but my
purpose in writing this is simply to beg you, literally in the name of
humanity, do not buy into the hateful idea that the process of coming here as a
refugee is an easy one or a haphazard one or taken lightly by any entity
involved. My purpose is to implore you that we who have so much--no matter how
many bills we are stressing over--can always make room for more, that that is
what we are supposed to be ABOUT as a country. I'm not even a nationalist and
Zeus knows I have my share of criticisms of our country, but if I have a shred
of nationalism in me, it is because I really BELIEVE in the idea that we SHOULD
be a nation of people who care, who love, who are attempting to write the BOOK
on second chances.
I know many of us don't like to
think about or be reminded of the fact that our ancestors stole this land to
begin with and then enslaved or massacred millions upon it. Of course, we can
never go back and make that right again and we know it, so some of us want to
say it's in the past, it's not our fault, let it go. But is it really in the
past? Are our hearts clean from the selfishness and greed that caused our
ancestors to act in such a despicable way? We have the chance now in this
crisis, in every crisis of discrimination--at home and abroad--to show that we
are willing to shed that selfish, ugly part of ourselves that would have us
turn our back on suffering and say "somebody else's problem." We have
the chance to prove that we CAN BE that beacon of refuge, that we DO stand
beside those words on the statue of liberty, that we ARE truly courageous--not
just with bluster and military superiority that for most of us is far removed
from our own personal situation--but with our hearts. So, I challenge you,
Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus, and my fellow atheists, be courageous with
your hearts and dare to prove your love. If you are concerned about evil and
hatred reaching us here, Ive got news for you, it's ALREADY here. It's in our
own hearts, in every little selfish decision, every tiny or giant step away
from the idea of unity and love and compassion, every broken promise, every
turned back, every furtive glance away. We are not perfect but we have the
chance to be MORE perfect every day and like Michelangelo, chip away at WASN'T
David, until the beautiful form slowly emerges. If you want to fight evil, if
you really want to fight it, then by all means have the courage to do so within
yourselves because THAT is the ONLY way it will actually be defeated. Open your
hearts and keep them open, in the face of fear and threats and intimidation, in
the face of violence and lies and ignorance, be truly courageous and keep them
open still.
