TOW #9: Visual Text - Syrian Refugee Political Cartoon

In the midst of a civil war, many Syrians have been left homeless. More than four million refugees have been displaced across the world. Hundreds of thousands of refugees have found their way to Europe. As the conflict in Syria drives these refugees out, some western European nations have been accepting refugees at large into their countries, whereas others have opposed to taking in the refugees. In this political cartoon, Syrian refugees are caught in the middle as a hand adorning the EU logo and a knife with IS (Islamic State) on the blade push the refugees back and forth, representing the current situation the migrants are in. The refugees have nowhere to go, as depicted in the cartoon. The IS inscribed knife represents their inability to return to their homes, for fear that they may be killed in the brutal Syrian civil war. The hand of the EU pushing the refugees back representing the unwillingness to accept the refugees of many European nations. In the aftermath of the recent terrorist attacks by ISIS in Paris, the attitude towards refugees and the response to ISIS may change. Countries previously more accepting of refugees, especially France, may have different policies towards refugees and national security as time goes on and the French people reel from the recent attacks. Just as the U.S. responded to 9/11 with the patriot act and the deployment of troops into the Middle East, France has closed its borders temporarily, heightening security. Only time will tell if this trend continues with France, as well as the rest of Europe, in the coming months and years.