politics: refugees

Everybody looks up at Angela Merkel. Every person I talked to in Sweden likes her and thinks that she's a good politician. They think germany is a good conutry in general. Nobody has forgotten World War 2, but they don't judge Germans for that. We weren't even alive when that happened. I think we need to take responsibility for that, so it never happens again- (but actually Europe is in a very bad situation and many really bad things are about to happen right now), but I don't think we should feel guilty. Before coming to Sweden I thought I would be much more confronted with that topic. But it's like they forgot, or forgave.

Not having to face this problem, I'm confronted with another issue that makes me very very sad. It's how they treat refugees. And with "they" I mean my (finally :) ) the students on my LAST school. As you may know, Sweden takes the most refugees of all the european countrys. And there are already many foreigners in Sweden. And it is not very hard for them to find jobs and a place to live, at least after a while. They can go to school, be in special programs where they learn swedish better. The system is good.
 The Swede's are proud of that. But there is one thing tha makes me very sad. It is the fact that the "Native Swede's" are not interested in them at all. We had that new guy in our class. He's 19, turning 20 soon. Just as my sister. He's coming from middle east. His family fled from Afghanistan to Iran when he was young because of the war. He couldn't go to a public school there. At the age of 16, he left Iran with one of the refugee boats without telling anyone. He had to spend a lot of money for that. He didn't even know that there was a country such as Sweden. So he arrived and was confused how reserved everybody was. He didn't know any swedish. He learned it, he got a job on the weekends so he can afford living here. He hasn't seen his family since he left. Because it's very expensive. He came here with nothing, knowing noone, don't speaking the language. And in 4 years he built up all this. At the age of 16 you're a child. I couldn't do that, living all alone, working and studying at the same time. But I understand their problems really good. Because I'm in a foreign country too, don't speaking the language. But a completely different situation.

I hate the way the "Native Swede's" treat them. They just ignore them. Wearing their michael kors bags, feeling sorry for all the refugees that die on their way to Europe, they save up some money with the school to help them. But then again- a little bit money won't fix these problems. And they only see what happens somewhere in the ocean, but not what happens in their school. It could be so easy to just walk up to them and talk to them. They speak swedish, honey! But people just don't want to care. Everybody has their own story to tell. And if only you would listen, it would blow your mind. But people don't want to look over the rim of a tea cup. I am afraid there could be an underclass with the refugees in Europe. And I think It's already starting. We need to incorporate them in our society.

His english was quite bad. He didn't have a good chance to learn it. But his swedish was good. And still I was the only person talking to him. Which made me so sad. He's just one of so many people who share similar stories. I have a great respect for these people. What they do is impressing.
I feel so sorry for him that I left the school, I really hope he'll be fine.

#tiredofyourignorance #keinbockaufnazis



(I want to be very careful with complaining about this. Because I don't know very much about how it is in any other place than my "old" school. And I have no idea how it is in Germany. I just really really hope it's different. Because these stories broke my heart. )