REFUGEES

Analyzing and evaluating videos and memes related to the #blacklivesmatter movement led me to explore the treatment of minorities and refugees in other countries, which I will discuss here. I think that these issues are all connected because they all relate to prejudicial treatment of marginalized groups of people around the world. Just as not every black person in America is the same yet all deserve to be treated with respect and dignity by members of the community, so too should refugees from Syria, Muslims around the world, and people living in and fleeing Sudan. This is a human rights issue that extends far beyond the borders of the United States and that relates to people of all races, religions, genders, and social status.

This meme contains an image from a city in Syria that was destroyed and left behind uninhabitable. The image is something that many people in America are unfamiliar with because we cannot relate to these living conditions. Although we suffered a great loss as a nation with the attacks on September 11, acts of terror of this magnitude do not happen here. The powerful imagery adds to the effectiveness of the language used below it, which is clear and self-explanatory: "This is why the Syrian refugees cannot 'go back to where they came from.'" Sadly, the sentiment at the heart of this meme is something that is echoed more and more often: people in America do not want to allow Syrian refugees to relocate to the U.S. because they fear the refugees will be advocates of terrorism. Refugees are viewed as dangerous and threatening, so people want to turn them away despite the fact that they are innocent people who have been forced out of their homes and have nowhere else to go. This meme evokes a strong emotional response from its audience, which makes it not only important, but effective.

This meme is a snapshot of a Tweet posted on November 16, 2015 that calls out the hypocrisy of people who say that all lives matter, yet don't hold that same opinion when the issue of Syrian refugees comes up in debate. The language that the Tweet uses is clear and to the point. There is not any room for misinterpretation here.

This final meme is a photo of protesters in Sudan who have organized to protest the genocide that has been going on there for years. "The genocide is being carried out by a group of government-armed and funded Arab militias known as the Janjaweed (which loosely translates to ‘devils on horseback’). The Janjaweed systematically destroy Darfurians by burning villages, looting economic resources, polluting water sources, and murdering, raping, and torturing civilians. These militias are historic rivals of the main rebel groups, the Sudanese Liberation Movement (SLM), and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM). As of today, over 480,000 people have been killed, and over 2.8 million people are displaced" (World Without Genocide). The young men in the photo are seen holding signs that reflect their positions with one reading, "Stop ethnic cleansing in Darfur." This is powerful and effective because it labels the violence there in terms that people don't necessarily use when they think about what's happening there.

PERSONALIZED