It’s everyone’s obligation to help…

This a guest-post from Sara, an Iraqi Ex-Muslim who currently works as a pediatrician in the US.

I was a refugee.

I remember the night we left Iraq. Driving through the desert to the Jordanian border at night to escape war and persecution. I remember the officer who rummaged through my toys and how sad I was when my doll’s shoes were missing once the daylight hit. I remember living in the Jordanian mountains playing all day for a year without an education because Jordan would not let immigrant children in schools. I remember the crippling fear I felt every time I heard an airplane fly. Eight years old and forever scared by war, I played…because it’s all I knew how to do. I remember my first day of school in America….not knowing a single word in English or even how to spell my own name. These memories are what made me who I am today. Without my parents taking a risk for a better future…I might have been an orphan or dead by now. I consider myself one of the lucky ones and feel a deep obligation to bring attention to this issue. The world has arbitrary borders drawn by man and we as humans have been dumb enough to fight over these lines for centuries. Enough is enough. No more dead. No more pain. All countries have an obligation to help. ‪#‎IWasARefugee‬ ‪#‎AylanKurdi‬ ‪#‎Syria‬ ‪#‎Iraq‬ ‪#‎RefugeeCrisis‬