Author Archives: Angela Maria Villada

Refugees in Germany

There is currently a big problem with the countless Syrian refugees that have nowhere to go. Many countries claim that there is no room or no opportunities for these people in their land. When I first heard about this issue I was appalled, there was no space in my mind for the idea that there was no space for others. How could so many people turn their backs on those in need. I was called out by my boyfriend, he is German and his family is dealing everyday with the issue of these displaced people.

The way that he explained it was that there are so many people that need help and that his country is physically unable to clothe them, shelter them, and generally care for that many people. He patiently explained the delicate economy of different countries and how difficult it is to keep them in balance with an increase of workers. Slowly, these people started becoming statistics in my mind.

Recently I received an image from his mother that once again created a very real image of people in my mind. There is so little space in the refugee shelters that there is no longer space for people with small children. The picture that I had received was an image of a women, a man, and a baby.  The couple had nowhere to go with their newborn because they were told that there was no place for them in the shelter. My boyfriends mother, as well as others in the area are taking people such as these into their homes and giving them even an ounce of hope for the future. This has sparked a sort of happiness inside of me, although it is necessary to be careful people are always willing to help one another.

Emory Shooting

In the past two years the threat of a school shooting has gone up by 158%. Social media allows students to send messages faster and to a greater audience. Last weekend, fall break 2015, a 21 year old Oxford student sent a threat through Yik Yak saying “I’m shooting up the school. Tomorrow. Stay in your rooms. The ones on the quad are the ones who will go first.”

I want to discuss why have student become more prone to this violence? Is death being taken more lightly because it is so much easier to purchase a gun? Is it because we see these killing occur all around the country so often? I am not sure. It seems to me that these occurrences seem like a fantasy until they occur close to you. I was personally taken aback by the whole thing. After watching the video it made me angry how lightheartedly the students took the threat. It is said that the threat was a joke, but killing is not a joke. The students who were interviewed kept laughing as they answered the questions, one even claimed that he had not taken it seriously. All of it is fun and games until parents end up mourning their children.

To the young adults of today it was common to see threats and death everywhere in the news, it was simple to become numb. Television brainwashes this generation into becoming blind to the cries of people on the screen. It has become such a problem that they are no longer morally repulsed by the idea of getting a gun and murdering their fellow students. There are so many issues surrounding this movement of violence; the ease of getting a gun, the ability to shoot it, the idea of going on a website and posting the plans. It seems to me that the people who keep shooting up schools are drawn to posting things online announcing it, all they want is recognition in a sea of people. The problem being how do we stop this.

http://www.ajc.com/videos/news/student-arrested-after-shooting-threat-at-oxford/vDcWyx/