Just a few weeks ago Miry, the founder of Miry's list, led a class discussion during my International Relations class. The timing of this was perfect as one of the topics we were covering in class was the current influx of immigrants across the world. Miry's list is a non-profit devoted to helping refugees gain citizenship, acclimate, and overall just feel welcome during a confusing and impossible time in their lives. One of the main focuses during the class, however, was doing our best to recognize, or rather get a sliver of what these refugees might be going through. Seeing these refugees as people, with names and families, rather than a number found on a news source. We discussed a few of the overwhelming feelings these refugees may be facing and focused on some that seem like basic human rights. For example safety and security. Without these two feelings, almost everything else one could be expected to do is significantly harder. We also talked about the impact a situation like that of many refugees has on the different age brackets, with teens and young adults typically being hit the hardest. Overall this class revolved around realizing that these refugees are the same as us. While they may speak a different language or come from another region, they are still humans who have the same emotions and feelings we do. They are people who we can connect to, and people who deserve the same basic rights and necessities that we do.
Poly has had the privilege of having Mr. Pond speak on its campus twice in the last four years. While I, unfortunately, was not present for the first, I was enthralled at being able to attend the most recent one. Pond is someone who can be presented as a role model for just about anything. He started off the night by sharing some details from his past and revealing many of his experiences to the audience. As someone who has survived a horrible atrocity, the fact that Pond is able and willing to share his experiences is inspiring in it of itself. He focused on his survival of the Cambodian genocide and the bullying that ensued after he arrived in America. His own experiences were a true testimony to how powerful stories are, an idea that he has been trying to teach for some time. However, what particularly struck me, was what Pond was doing in his communities. This side of him which takes what he knows and puts into action concrete solution is even more inspiring. He mentioned some work...
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