Meetings

I know we are all desperately afraid that "refugees" are all just waiting to sneak into the U.S. so they can slaughter us all and force Sharia law on all us infidels,  but here are a few I met the other night, that seemed to be perfectly pleased to be a part of America.

I was at the annual refugee Thanksgiving dinner that several local agencies host (Did you know that Tucson already accepts about 1,000 refugees a year from all around the world, including Muslim, Christian, Yazidi, Bhuddist, etc.) and got a chance to talk with a few interesting people from other lands. Let me introduce you:

I first met R. R. is a young (20 year old) man that worked with the U.S. military in Afghanistan as an interpreter. His family is in Kabul and he got to travel around the country in some vital hot spots. This qualified him for a special immigrant visa (I wonder if the U.S. gave him the last name, FNU - or family name unknown. This seems to be a common trick we play when we can't figure things out, and the immigrant gets to keep this last name for years) and he came to the U.S. without his family. Lately, he has been talking to Army recruiters about joining the U.S. Army and serving again.

Next, I met S., who is from Africa. S. and his family have been in a camp in Africa for 9 years awaiting a chance to either go back home or to be allowed to migrate to a new home. This is a common experience for refugees, staying in camps for years and years before finally getting the word that they can grab a few things and move to a permanent home.

I also met S. S. was an interpreter for the Army in Iraq and he also got a special immigrant visa to fast track his immigration process. He is Yazida, a minority group in Northern Iraq. After we left a power vacuum in the area, many in his community were raped and killed by ISIS and his family escaped to Turkey. The Yazidi are not really safe there either and his family has been told they would be getting VISA's to come to the U.S. However, since Paris was attacked by ISIS, the process has been put on hold, possibly indefinitely. I suppose the concern is that perhaps his family has joined ISIS too.

I realize that their are no easy answers to the problem of terrorism and the absolute commitment Jihadis have to forcing their will on the rest of the world, but it is good to remember that real people that are on the side of freedom and liberty are affected by the decisions we make, some of whom who have already risked their lives for us.