Points About the Refugee Crisis

In many of the countries on the “ban” list—if not all of them—the U.S. is partly to blame for the destabilization and destruction happening now. America’s disastrous foreign policies have played a major role in creating the current refugee crisis. Six out of the seven countries on the list have been the targets of U.S. military operations—all except Iran, which has been subjected to devastating economic sanctions for over thirty-something years. The ban, which is supposed to bolster national security, is likely to have the opposite effect, and further drive anti-American sentiment and extremism. With the ban dividing a nation, alienating over a million American citizens, and violating our Constitution, it seems as though the biggest threat to national security isn’t Muslim immigrants, but Donald Trump himself.

To keep the guide concise, we regrettably can’t put all of the info here, but if you want more details, check here.

Iraq

An illegal war in Iraq to destroy non-existent weapons of mass destruction left approximately 165,000 Iraqi civilians dead, from the time the invasion commenced in 2003 through April 2015. At least twice that number of Iraqi civilians died due to collateral damages of war—i.e., damages to the systems responsible for providing food, healthcare, and clean drinking water; and as a result, dying from illness, infectious diseases, and malnutrition that would have been otherwise preventable or treatable.

The families of the civilians killed in error have received nothing—not even a safe haven to flee [U.S.] bombs.

President Obama was the fourth consecutive president to authorize bombing campaigns in Iraq; Trump is the fifth.  President Trump regrets that while in Iraq, the U.S. did not pillage their oil (a clear-cut illegal war crime, and violation of international law) and says that, “maybe we’ll have another chance” to go to Iraq and loot. Today, many parts of Iraq are still without access to safe housing and clean drinking water, despite more than $100 billion committed to aid and the reconstruction of Iraq.

Syria

Syria has been called “the worst humanitarian crisis of our time.” It’s believed that about half of Syria’s pre-war population—about 11 million people—have been either forced to flee their homes, or killed. Conservative estimates cite that the war has killed nearly half a million civilians.

There are approximately one million Syrians living in makeshift refugee camps inside Syria, and 13.5 million Syrians require humanitarian assistance. The families of the civilians killed in error have received nothing—not even a safe haven to flee our bombs. The U.S. has accepted 18,007 refugees since the war began in Syria in 2011—an insignificantly small number when it’s estimated that there were 6,150 Syrians displaced per day from January to August 2016 alone. Right now, inside Syria, there are more than 6.3 million displaced people.

Yemen

Lieu wrote that Washington was engaged in “willful blindness,” as evidence emerged of Saudi-led strikes on civilian targets like schools, markets, hospitals, weddings, and funerals.

Yemen has been called “the world’s next great refugee crisis.” Unfortunately, the U.S. has a hand in this crisis, as well. Saudi Arabia began their bombing campaign at the end of March 2015. The U.S. has assisted Saudi Arabia’s efforts, despite warnings to the Pentagon from U.S. House Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., that U.S. servicemen may be charged with “aiding and abetting” war crimes during Saudi-led coalition strikes that are killing civilians.

Lieu wrote that Washington was engaged in “willful blindness,” as evidence emerged of Saudi-led strikes on civilian targets like schools, markets, hospitals, weddings, and funerals. Yemen, a dry, hilly, and water-poor country, was already food insecure prior to the war; about nine-tenths of the food in Yemen was imported.

International aid organization Oxfam issued a warning that Yemen could very well be out of food by April of this year, which marks two years of war. In less than two years, the rates of child malnutrition have tripled, meaning it’s risen more than 200%. Overall, half of the population is suffering from food insecurity and malnutrition, and 82% of the population needs humanitarian assistance.