International Refugee Day 2007

Aaron Shamamba, son of Congolese refugees, a Slovak citizen

Ja som len človek, ako ty…
In preparation for International Refugee Day 2007, several refugees with whom I work traveled to Bratislava to make a music video and short commercial to be aired on all Slovak television channels this week.  You can check out these clips on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4KhdmmpIliE. 

My work here with refugees has taught me the importance of being vocal about issues like racism, tolerance, and living together.  Just last week, I was talking with a neighbor in Obišovce who asked me quite bluntly, “What do you think of Hungarians? I think they’re no good.”  I wasn’t prepared to quickly respond.  It’s difficult for Slovakians, who are so proud of their heritage, to understand that I can’t even tell the difference between Slovaks and ethnic Hungarians, who are a minorty here.  I encounter similar attitudes at the school in Drienov: “Oh, those Gypsies, they don’t want to learn, they’re stupid…”  It’s a sharp contrast to American schools, where teachers are taught racial sensitivity and teaching tolerance is part of the curriculum. 

Miriam Tazhib enjoys her 3rd birthday with Afghan and Slovak traditions

In 2005, Slovakia granted 11 refugees Slovak citizenship out of almost 12,000 applicants, according to the UNHCR (United Nations international refugee organization).  There is a definite problem here accepting differences and treating foreigners as equals.  The refugees I work with encounter it daily.  And yet, I know the U.S. struggles with these same issues, even if it is more covert.  How many times have I heard something like “If only those people would learn English, ” or how many times have I myself passed up the chance to help a refugee in some way, even simply being a friend during a time which can be a very lonely transition.  “I am only a human being, like you, ” says Feza in Slovak at the end of the clip.  We may speak different and look different, but we all have dreams, we are mothers, fathers, classmates, colleagues at work – let’s celebrate our commonalities and honor our differences, for in the end, we are all human beings living in the same world which God created.