Tag: sad

  • Australian Fires a Call to Action

    Australian Fires a Call to Action

    We can not continue this way. This is not normal. The catastrophic fires raging within Australia’s forests are not normal. The one billion animals dead and eight thousand dead koalas is not normal. As a result of us being Americans, the situation seems far away to us. Justifiably, we are not confronted with the pain of being there: smelling, seeing, and feeling the fires. However, we must stand as a collective whole and fight against climate change.

    The longer the climate worsens, the more it seems like people are disregarding the situation. It is in our human nature to get tired of one thing after it continues for a while (just like a monotonous sitcom at your grandparents’ house), but this climate crisis is not something we can turn off. We know that, but we should act as if that is true. We can not expect for things to get better unless we instill the urgency of the situation now. Climate change is happening, and it’s happening quickly. To match the speed of this crisis, we need to return to the foundations of humanity.

    Within humanity, there is in it the “human,” that makes society better, and at times as critical as this, we need to be reminded of the change we can make. Humanity is not something to be learned, it’s a basic kindergarten principle. We all can practice it and implement it into our lives. The only requirement for making change is knowing that you can. Making small changes like maybe not getting that five-dollar Starbucks drink on Monday and instead using that money to donate to fire relief and recovery programs, decreasing your carbon footprint by turning off the light when you leave a room, or minimizing shower time. These little things when practiced as a collective whole create progress and change. They matter.

    You can help the world continue more positively because we can not continue this way. These fires are not normal. This is not normal.

  • Not Home for the Holidays

    Happy Thanksgiving! Merry Christmas! Happy Hanukkah! Happy New Years! Happy to be home for the holidays! But wait…. instead of being able to be reunited with loved ones people are faced with deportation. Wow what a Christmas miracle!

    If you couldn’t tell, I was being ironic. Unfortunately, not everyone is able to be with their families during the holiday season due to Trump’s Administration embracing the bill, R.A.I.S.E. (Reforming American Immigration for a Strong Economy). The bill is meant to raise American wages by ending chain migration and by reducing the amount of Green Cards by 50%, yet, the bill ultimately fails to address an important aspect of deportation… the human within the statistics of “illegal aliens.”

    This holiday, we want to be able to celebrate the end of the decade with loved ones, but in order to do that our community must rise up against the tyranny occurring in our backyards. Instead of Santa Claus, children catch a sight of I.C.E. in front of their homes. Instead of Santa quietly sneaking in and stealing cookies, children are faced with the disruption of I.C.E. barging in their homes and taking their parents away. Instead of tears of joy, the community is encountered with tears of sorrow.

    In the fiscal year of 2018 more than 256,000 people were deported. According to the Washington Post, “I.C.E. said that 2,711 who were traveling in families and 5,571 unaccompanied children were removed from U.S. soil.” With the end of 2019 arriving, we can only hope that the amount of families separated decrease.

    With a large number of students at Poly being first generation Americans, this situation hits close to home. As opposed to former president, Barack Obama, who only deported immigrants convicted of serious crimes, Mr. Trump wants more rigid policies that would break up families.

    Peoples aren’t only deported for coming to America illegally but even legal immigrants are being deported if they have committed a numerous amount of misdemeanors, not accounting for how long ago it occurred and whether the person has changed or not. The measures that have been taken to deport family members away are unjust and some of the immigrants being deported are refugees who came into this country not knowing much. As a result, they were destined to suffer in this failed system called America, the land of the free! Family members and immigrants shouldn’t suffer from a failed system that is not set up to assimilate refugees and immigrants.

    In order to stay safe this holiday, you should know your rights. I highly suggest you search up a know your rights card and if an I.C.E. officer does try to instigate a situation show them the card and attain a lawyer. Remember you have the right to remain silent during this holiday season.