2/20/15
Soc 202-01
In the article " To Understand Europe's Immigration Crisis, Listen to the Voiceless 'Illegals'," Akbar Ahmed takes a closer look at Muslims who are fleeing to Europe, most often landing first in Italy. Ahmed relates a common story of huge numbers of Muslims leaving their home to one story of a boy he met in Sicily named Ahmedu. Ahmedu is the oldest son of his two parents who split, he is from Gambia, where his family among thousands live under the international poverty line. Last year over 3,00 died trying to reach Europe, 170,00 made it, Ahmedu was luckily one of those. He went on a fourteen month journey, leaving his home with no money and no documentation. However, his arrival in Europe did not guarantee his safety, his dark skin and religion trigger fear in most Europeans, both the status of an immigrant and a Muslim. Ahmed calls Europe to revise their immigration laws and plans, that some of these immigrants should be granted asylum, and treated as humans. What strikes me in this article is the journalists ability to connect such a large issue into one single boy's story. When we hear number like the 3,00 dead last year from trying to flee their country, it is hard to connect that it is real human beings who died, a little bit of humanity is lost in that translation of numbers to human. How am I supposed to connect with a 16 year old Muslim boy from Gambia, when truly he could be my younger brother. We label people as Muslim, or immigrant before human. It is this great demonstration of the sociological imagination that allows me to feel compassion for this boy and his story, and along with it the realization that this is the life of thousands of Muslims, and in a global perspectives millions who flee.
Maggie Neas
2/20/15
Soc 202-01
2:55
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/akbar-ahmed/europe-immigration-crisis-illegals_b_6717170.html?utm_hp_ref=world
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