Syrian refugee rally in pictures
UMD stood in the pouring rain to show their solidarity with the refugees
Aaround 70 UMD students and professors gathered around the newly erected Frederick Douglass statue outside of Hornbake Library to show their solidarity with Syrian refugees at 6pm last night.
The rally was a response to Maryland Governor Larry Hogan’s request to end the resettlement of Syrian refugees in Maryland following last Friday’s Paris attacks.
The Facebook event read “UMD will come together… to take a stand against this fear-mongering and Islamophobia. We must support human rights and welcome refugees into our state.”
The rally began with the crowd chanting “Don’t give in to racist fear, refugees are welcome here” and “From Baltimore to PG, we support the refugees.”
Crowds of close to 70 people gathered to listen to several student activists and a professor speak about the ongoing refugee crisis.
One student, Aiyah Sibay, used this rally as a call to action, claiming “When we bring refugees to this country, our responsibility doesn’t end there. It’s not just about bringing refugees into our country but it’s about how we are going to treat them once they are here.”
A UMD professor, Xien El-Amine, spoke about the disparity between politician’s views of Syrian refugees and reality, saying, “Since 9/11 we’ve had only 2,170 Syrian refugees come into this country. How many have been accused of any crime, let alone terrorism? None.”
When asked why she came to this event freshman Olivia said, “This is an issue I’m extremely passionate about. After I graduate I plan on working with an organization that helps refugees, and I think the fact that our governor wants to shut them out is terrible.
“I came to this rally to show my solidarity with the refugees.”
UMD freshman Liz believes Americans shouldn’t allow misguided stereotypes to prevent us from helping those in need, stating, “It’s cowardly for the United States to close it’s doors to innocent people crying out for help.”