Larsen’s  End of Dreams exhibit, a powerful piece within itself, is also eerily similar to the plight of the millions of refugees from Northern Africa attempting to escape into Spain, instead of Italy. Rhiannon Welch artfully connected Larsen’s work with the theories that Italy is experiencing a reminder of its colonial era crimes. After reading about the history and delayed postcolonial reckoning by Italy, there was an additional layer of meaning to Larsen’s work. His exhibit, and the remaining submerged pieces, serve as a permanent reminder for Italy about the repercussions of its harmful actions against others, but also is an appeal to the ethical side of the rest of the EU to take a stand against the migrant and refugee crisis occurring in North Africa. As Welch stated, “the ethical and political potential” of the humans who were never heard is immense, and other countries (such as Spain) should use it as a reminder when taking action.

However, after reading “The Crossing”, and learning that the migrant crisis in Morocco was named as “one of the most critical global humanitarian crises” by an independent third party organization, and global players still had not taken action, I saw that Spain and the EU have decided to ignore the subtle reminders of their inhumanity and continue to create inhumane, unethical situations. “The Crossing” evoked the same reaction in me that I had after viewing the trailer for “The Burning”. Seeing and reading about the degree of poverty, where individuals are scavengers and, instead of seeking shelter from natural elements in a tent, are seeking shelter from police abuse, was at times painful, knowing that these individuals are trying to fight for a better future without even their basic, universal, human rights. When I was reading Beni’s description of what he and others want from “Europe”, I was reminded of “The American Dream” and of the millions of American immigrants who came to a new country to seek a better future. The constraints on mobility deemed by birthright seems is, in part, why there is such a huge migrant crisis occurring in the first place, and perhaps would be a good starting point for long-term initiatives led by the international community.

Reading about Spain (and more broadly, the EU’s) response towards this crisis also made me question the United States’ response to refugees. I was slightly surprised to learn in class that the US has a refugee quota of zero, especially as we claim to be a leading figure in humanitarian rights. The Welch article that compared Italy’s crisis to its colonial roots reminded me of the US and our history with slavery. As a country, we have acknowledged the inhumanity and unethicality of slavery, but have we compensated for our actions by giving back? Shouldn’t the US support migrants and sponsor them to America, as retribution for the actions (aside from the in general moral obligation that we should have)? Hopefully the United States does not continue to turn a blind eye to the crisis of North America, and pay the price later as other countries have.