We've Been Here Before: A Mennonite Perspective on the Syrian Refugee Crisis

re-fyu̇-ˈjē: someone who has been forced to leave a country because of war or for religious or political reasons

If you live in North America, you probably have an opinion on refugees. Six months ago, you may not have held an opinion on refugees, but at this present moment, based on the global happenings of the recent week, you probably stand somewhere in the continuum of opinion. You have probably heard arguments from both sides of the dichotomy. On the one hand, you have heard those arguing for increased refugee immigration, for it is our duty as those in positions of plenty to help those in positions of need. On the other hand, you have also likely heard the argument that there may be a link between Syrian refugees and the terrorist group ISIS/ISIL, and for that reason, Canadians and Americans alike need to be cautious about welcoming in refugees with open arms.

Whatever your opinion on refugee status, I feel like there is something which I need to declare: my family came to Canada as refugees.

This will likely come as a surprise to many who do not know my family heritage. To any innocent bystander, I look like a typical Canadian: blonde, tall, blue eyes. Your typical Germanic/Anglo-Saxon description. As a result, I do not experience the discrimination that other visible minorities may face. However, I recognize that I would not be alive had Canada turned their back on my family when they fled the dangers of the Soviets many years ago.

Allow me now to briefly summarize a small portion of my family history. I am a fourth generation Canadian, so my refugee status traces back to my great-grandparents. For as far back as I have traced, my family has been part of the Mennonite tradition, which began in the Germany/Netherlands region. After facing persecution in Europe, many Mennonites settled in the territory now known as Russia and Ukraine.

At the time my great-grandparents fled from Ukraine and Russia, it was not a pleasant place for them to live. My great-grandparents were persecuted because of their faith, and they all ended up on the run. One of my great-grandmothers fled from a house only hours before the Russians came and killed the rest of her family. One of my great-grandfathers had his land taken from him and was forced into a life of poverty. All were forced to make the difficult decision to leave everything they had behind and make the terrifying journey into a new country.

I am not writing this in an attempt to receive heaps of sympathy from the online community. In fact, at this point, I feel like my family has allowed me to be born and raised in a situation of privilege in many senses, which I recognize and am grateful for. Rather, the reason I am writing this is as an abbreviated case study for the current situation in which we now find ourselves.

Whenever we as individuals or as a community are evaluating a decision--whether past, present, or future--it is important that we consider the context in which the situation took, is taking, or will take place in. So, let us consider the context which my great-grandparents found themselves in.

It was still early in the 20th century, and Russia was not not a pleasant place for my ancestors to live. The Russians ran around pillaging Mennonite communities and killing anyone who would stand in opposition to their national values. They had a vision, and they would not let the Mennonites object to this vision any longer. If I may ask this question, does this sound familiar to our current context in any way?

Russia was to my great-grandparents what ISIS is to many Muslims in the Middle East right now. ISIS is forcing people out of their homes and killing anyone who stands in their way, much in the same way that the Russians did to my great-grandparents a hundred years ago.

For my great-grandparents, it was not a question of whether or not moving would allow them to experience a new worldview and culture or simply to see new things, the reason many people travel globally in this day. No, fleeing was a matter of life or death. Stay, and risk being killed, or flee, and hope that you can give your family a better life

When my ancestors were fleeing, tensions with the Russians were beginning to rise, and there was no visible difference separating my great-grandparents from other Russians. Additionally, the Russian government, who had been at periods involved quite closely with the Russian Orthodox church, could have been labelled under the same Christian label my great-grandparents were fleeing under. At the time, the Canadian government could have shut the doors to Canada on my great-grandparents. But thankfully, they didn't. The Canadian government recognized that my people were a people in need, and they welcomed us into the country with open arms. Now, my family gives back, providing our neighbours with farmers, bankers, paramedics, teachers, brothers, sisters, and friends just to name a few.

There are many similarities between the situation my ancestors faced and the one many Syrian refugees are currently facing. Are they equal in every way? No, I do not believe so. However, based on the similarities we have established, we now are faced with a choice: will we be blinded to the current situation and assume that the people fleeing are part of some elaborate plot of terror simply because of their skin colour and religion? Or will we recognize that these people are a people in need, and that perhaps if we take them into our country they will in their gratitude turn into farmers, bankers, teachers, doctors, lawyers, and maybe even politicians?

We are currently faced with a decision. It is my prayer that we will make the right one.

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"When an alien resides with you in your land, you shall not oppress the alien.The alien who resides with you shall be to you as the citizen among you; you shall love the alien as yourself, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God." (Lev 19:33-34)

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you."(Matt 5:43-44)