Future citizens could be next national treasures
In 1964, a war broke out in Zanzibar. A 17-year-old boy named Farrokh Bulsara and his family fled to England as refugees. That boy eventually changed his name to Freddie Mercury. I went and saw “Bokidd hemian Rhapsody” with a good friend of mine and something kept bothering me about the origin story of the person considered the most talented singer in human history.
If England had been filled with people like the supporters of President Donald Trump, Mercury likely could have died without the world ever hearing his voice.
It’s not just hypothetical, Anne Frank and her family did die because of xenophobia. Fear of “other” has left countless people to die in wars, and it’s a loss for the entire world.
Fleeing violence is a universal desire. Anyone in the midst of bombs dropping would do whatever it takes to try to find safety for themselves and their children. Anyone living in a country being overrun by drug cartels would want to try to keep their kids safe, even if it means walking thousands of miles, leaving everything behind.
In the dreaded “caravan,” it is possible that the next Mercury is sleeping under a tarp along the road, or the next Stephen Hawking or the next Amelia Earhart. There are certainly future doctors, emergency medical technicians, firefighters, nurses, teachers, farmers and mechanics. There are future citizens of any country that offers them safety, and the loyalty that comes with inclusion.
Anyone who has ever chanted “build the wall” should never sing “We Are The Champions” or “We Will Rock You” because Mercury would have died at 17 had it been up to the people who support the wall. Kiera Brown Corinth