On World Refugee Day America closes the Golden Door

Today is June 20, World Refugee DayDesignated by the United Nations to honor the millions which have been forced to flee their country due to conflicts and persecution. Closed for the first time in 2001, World Refugee Day highlighted the 123.2 million people worldwide who have been moved over the past three decades by war, violence or a well -founded fear of persecution.

The world’s population of refugees has almost doubled in the last decade, and now, 1 on almost all 67 people on earth was forced to leave their house.

Over the years, I have had the privilege of working with several organizations on the front line of refugee service – including the International Living Committee, the Jewish Federation of the Côte du Golfe de la Florida and with local churches and community programs in the United States, South Africa, England and elsewhere.

I helped families transform apartments into houses, organized diapers and clean up supply training and organize birthday parties and excursions for children who have seen too much, far too young. I provided walks to medical appointments and I sat next to new nervous drivers learning the rules of unknown roads. I encouraged others to get involved in the support of refugees, both through personal interactions and articles that I have written for various publications.

When President Trump took office, he signed an executive decree suspending the admission program for American refugees, even thousands of people who had already been promised entry after in -depth screening and multiple obstacles. Six months later, the American refugee program remains effectively closed and the resettlement figures fell to almost zero. Only a few rare exceptions have been granted, such as the currently reinstalled Afrikaners of South Africa.

So, in a country that has largely closed its doors – where even the word “refugee” can trigger a fierce political debate – what does this day mark now?

For me, it means to remember the stories I heard and the moments of which I have witnessed – and to share them.

Stories like the one I heard from the Afghan family who tried to go in two cars while the Taliban got closer to Kabul. A car has been held. A car went to the airport. This part of the family now lives in the United States – to work, adapt and cry. Javed, the eldest son of the family, told me that his father was crying every night, not knowing if he would see his wife again.

And it’s just a story of a family. Each family has one – or a lot. Each extremely different. Everyone breaks completely.

The exhaust of fatal situations is not the end of the trials with which the refugees are confronted. They often spend years in refugee camps or temporary housing with too little food and too much fear. Those who have had the chance to go to the United States in the face of daily life to learn to live again in a foreign culture.

Help families of refugees with simple tasks – navigate in public transport, register children in school, buy grocery products – showed me how much courage it takes to rebuild your life in brick by background. I am always impressed.

I remember helping a Syrian family to move into a naked apartment in one of the most difficult districts of Tallahassee. They had almost nothing, but their first request was for the carpets. No beds or dishes. I did not understand before I realized that they needed a carpet for prayer. Their faith, even in the midst of rarity, surpasses every comfort that I thought essential.

Another time, I brought a set of porcelain tea – an almost forgotten wedding gift – to a refugee from Ukraine. She praised with joy. Something that had collected dust in my office made it feel at home.

Moments so small but deeply significant taught me how resilience is revealed on a daily basis.

I know from experience that the simple fact that the United States has actually closed its door to refugees does not mean that the need has disappeared. Organizations such as global aid and Global Church Service Continue to provide critical support to displaced people, in the United States and abroad. These groups welcome the support of Americans who wish to make a difference in life by the circumstances that they cannot control.

I told Javed once that the Bible says that we have to love our neighbors – and that everyone is our neighbor. He smiled and said the Koran teaches the same thing. This moment remained with me. We have spoken different languages ​​and followed different religions, but we shared the same director principle: love your neighbor.

So I come back to my question: what does the world day of refugees mean in a country that has actually closed its door to refugees?

I choose to remember. To testify. And above all – to refuse to look away.

Ray Stanton is the author of “Out of the shadow of September 11: an inspiring story of escape and transformation. “”