We Are on the Cusp of Massive -- and Convulsive -- Migrations
There is no way to stop these spasms and their attendant agonies.
According to a report just released by a United Nations agency, UNHCR, “ ...(t)he number of people forced to flee their homes has increased every year over the past decade and stands at the highest level since records began…” (1)
“By the end of 2021, those displaced by war, violence, persecution, and human rights abuses stood at 89.3 million, up 8 per cent on a year earlier and well over double the figure of 10 years ago, according to UNHCR’s annual Global Trends report.” (1)
I note that these figures do not include people who are on the move worldwide due to hunger, economic dislocation, and climate change.
We are, I believe, on the cusp of massive – and convulsive – migrations across the world. They portend dark and difficult times for all of humanity.
There is no way to stop these spasms and their attendant agonies. Draconian immigration laws will not succeed. Police and troops and armament will not succeed.
Border walls and fortifications are patently futile. Consider the ultimate ineffectiveness of the Great Wall of China, Hadrian’s Wall, the Maginot Line, and the Berlin Wall. Or of ancient Masada and Troy. Or of medieval castles and moats. One might as well try to stem the flow of Niagara Falls using colanders.
In short – mass exclusion of people never works. Corralling refugees in squalid camps never works.
May we instead summon the wisdom of inclusion.
Let us give succor to those displaced by war. Let us not only feed the poor: let’s help them farm. Let us help those in dire poverty by giving them resources to succeed. And may we help those displaced by climate change relocate to places where they can resume productive and fulfilling lives.
“Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teaming shore.
Send these, the homeless tempest-tossed to me:
I lift my lamp beside the golden door.” (2)
Sources:
(2) https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/4386-give-me-your-tired-your-poor-your-huddled-masses-yearning
Background:
https://reporting.unhcr.org/globalreport2021/
https://www.unhcr.org/62a9d1494/global-trends-report-2021