- Oct 2016
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time.com time.com
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Following an intense and sometimes dangerous journey, the final destination for refugees often falls short. There is a sense that what is supposed to be “home” could not feel less so. “You change your country, you go through a weird journey and then you are stuck in a weird place,” says Abou Kasem. “You cannot really interact with the German people. It’s not closed, you can go out, but you feel somehow that you’re treated like a different thing. But after you are out of the camp, it’s normal. Those feelings start to fade away.”
Mrs. Genova is a times journalist that writes about the nature of the daily life of a Syrian refugee. Since she does not have direct credentials to add her own input into the story she utilizes primary quotations to add to her credibility. I think it is also important to note that that Syrian refugees do not live a sort of utopian lifestyle once they are out of their war torn home. Not to say that other countries, in this case Germany, are worse, but to note that restarting a new life in a new land with a new language is not easy either. Realistically, if there is going to be a long term solution there will need to be some sort of assimilation program, and/or a way to rebuild Syria if and when the wars are all but over.
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One photo of a woman in a pale blue ball gown, running down the steps of a Bavarian palace, represents the European fairytale that Kasem and his fellow refugees had dreamt of. It was taken at the Würzburg Residence palace during a Manga convention and while the scene is somewhat fictional, it is in sharp contrast to the gloomy, blurred images of the refugee camp.
This part of the article has a subtle importance. Not only does the mass media of Europe and the United States depict a refugee in a place, "fellow refugees had dreamt of." so that it seems as if the world in Europe is paradise but it works the other way as well. The media that Europe, the United States, or any other part of the world receives from Syria is only a small glimpse into what is actually happening. The more accurate way to depict these countries is through people. I believe the outside reporters, analysts, and including myself do not know enough about the topic at hand. This is a bias that needs to be addressed.
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The figures face away from the camera, isolated and out of place. Driving rain and flat, grey skies form the backdrop to the utilitarian buildings that now serve as “home.”
Mrs. Genova's claim is that even if refugees make it to the more 'sought after' countries like Germany, it is not necessarily the refuge originally thought of.
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The Other Side: Life as a Syrian Refugee in Germany
Genova, Alexandra. "The Other Side: Life as a Syrian Refugee in Germany." Time. 23 Aug. 2016. Web. 11 October. 2016.
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