A Hope More Powerful Than The Sea

A Hope More Powerful Than The Sea

Adult biography
"Doaa could hear the men on the attacking boat laughing as they
hurled more pieces of wood at Doaa's boat. Those laughs were some of
the most horrifying sounds she had ever heard. She couldn't believe
they were enjoying themselves during their cruelty of trying to sink a
boat carrying little children. All around her were screams of terror
and people shouting desperate prayers.
The attacking boat finally reversed and pulled away from the
ship, and for a moment Doaa hoped that the onslaught was over, that
the men had merely wanted to frighten them. But seconds later, they
sped toward them again, and Doaa understood that they had no mercy and
had every intention of killing every man, woman, and child on board.
This time, when they rammed the side of Doaa's boat, the rickety
vessel took a sudden, violent nosedive into the sea."
Much of what Americans (at least in Central Maine) learn about
the desperate situation in Syria is tangential. We learn about its
diaspora's attempts to reach safety--the life and death litany. We
hear opinions on whether they are people caught in horrific situations
and deserving of sanctuary or potential terrorists who should be sent
back where they came from. But most of us know pitifully little about
their lived experience. Fortunately, Melissa Fleming, chief
spokesperson for the United Nations High Commission for Refugees
(UNHCR), has written an impossible to put down book, A Hope More
Powerful Than The Sea: The Journey of Doaa Al Zamel, that should go
far toward remedying this deficit.
During Doaa's childhood the dictator Hadaz al-Asaad had been
replaced by his son, Basher al-Assad. There was tentative hope. Many
wanted more freedom of speech and association. There was also desire
for economic improvement.
Doaa was the third daughter in a large extended family. (The
sixth child would be the son women were pressured to have). She loved
helping his father at his barbershop. When her older sisters married
young (as was the custom) and people started to tell her she would be
next she was not interested in being a teen bride. She wanted to be
the first in her family to go to University.
By 2011 the reforms the people yearned for were not happening.
Syrians became aware of Arab Spring--neighboring countries
overthrowing their dictatorships. One night a group of boys in Daraa,
Doaa's town, painted anti regime grafitti on their school wall. Boys
were rounded up and taken to a detention center. Desperate fathers
were told, "My advice to you is that you forget you ever had these
children. Go back home and sleep with your wives and bring other
children into the world, and if you can't do that, then bring your
wives to us and we will do the job for you."
Citizen protests were met with violent police crackdowns.
Demonstrators were shot with tear gas and live ammo. Then one morning
tanks drone into Daraa. The army was seeking "terrorists" (anyone who
spoke against the regime). Boys and men were taken away. Houses were
searched several times each day. Doaa and her younger sisters made a
pact to commit suicide if they were raped by soldiers. Their family
was coming close to starvation.
And their ordeal had only begun.
I urge you, my friends, to read this book. Imagine yourself and
your loved ones in the plights it portrays. Then find out what you
can do to raise awareness among your friends and family and members of
the legislature. In my mind ignorance is not an option.
In the epilogue, Fleming reminds us of something too many
Americans seem to forget:
"The simple truth is that refugees would not risk their lives on
such a dangerous journey if they could thrive where they were.
Migrants fleeing grinding poverty would not be on those boats if they
could feed themselves and their children at home or in bordering host
countries. Nobody would resort to spending their life savings to hire
the notorious smugglers if they could apply to resettle in a safe
country legally. Until these problems are addressed, people will
continue to cross the sea, endangering their lives to seek asylum. No
person fleeing conflict or persecution should have to die trying to
reach safety."
On a personal note, today, at least in the more enlightened
municipalities like Portland, Bangor, and Orono, they are celebrating
Indiginous People's Day. I have not been able to celebrate Columbus
Day in good conscience for ages. I don't think the way we've treated
indiginous peoples and trashed the land they took such good care of is
anything to celebrate. I hope this transition is an indication we're
going to actually listen to them and heed their wisdom.
A great big shout out goes out to the amazing indiginous people in our
midst and those who listen to and help advocate for them.
jules hathaway


Sent from my iPod