By Raegan Scharfetter/ reporter
A little over a year ago, on Sept. 2, 2015, the world was exposed to a photo of 3-year-old Syrian Alan Kurdi washed up on the Mediterranean shore, lifeless, after he and his family attempted to reach safety by fleeing from Turkey to Greece.
In 2015, more than 3,600 refugees, including Kurdi, his older brother Ghalib and his mother Rihanna, died in the eastern Mediterranean, all hoping for better lives for themselves and their loved ones.
Their father, Abdullah, however, survived when their overloaded boat capsized, but he was unable to save them.
A year has passed, and a question has risen about the morality of this generation.
No action has been taken to prevent the suffering of millions who risk their lives for safety. And since the Kurdi photo has been released, more than 4,000 refugees have lost their lives trying to complete a similar journey. This is unacceptable, and changes should be made.
Although the big underlying issue has not been resolved, some changes have been made since the photo was released. Save the Children, an organization for children in need, has launched a search-and-rescue boat to find these children and prevent them from drowning on their journeys to find better lives.
For most, Kurdi symbolizes all of the fallen children trying to reach safety in Europe. But he also symbolizes the injustice of the world and what changes need to be made for these children and these people to live fruitful lives.
More changes should be made — immediately. We can do things to help.
We can continue to support the countries with these needs by donating money, food and supplies to the governments that are taking in these refugees and attempting to integrate these people into society.
President Barack Obama’s Leaders’ Summit on Refugees took place Sept. 20, spreading awareness to increase funding to national organizations, admitting more refugees through resettlement and increasing refugees’ self-reliance, which is a step in the right direction.
The overall question remains, do you want to be the generation that changes their world?
