By now everyone has heard, of course, about the attacks on Paris that occurred Nov. 13. We’ve all seen horrific footage, heard reactions from celebrities, news anchors, family and friends, and maybe even changed our profile picture to that one time we saw the Eiffel Tower with the French flag filter. But what does all of this really mean? Where does it leave France, and essentially, the world? Where do we go from here? It’s difficult to say.
By now you have probably also seen the posts comparing how France stood with us on 9/11 and we, as Americans, will stand by them during this difficult time. Looking at these attacks as “the French 9/11” is actually more helpful than you might think. Sure, there are the obvious similarities—terrorist attacks on the most important parts of our nation. For us it was the World Trade Center in NYC and the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., and for them it was 6 locations across Paris. Heartless terrorists killed innocent people. But there are more similarities than just that.
The initial reactions from then President Bush, and French President Hollande are parallel as well. “These acts of mass murder were intended to frighten our nation into chaos and retreat. But they have failed. Our country is strong. A great people has been moved to defend a great nation,” Bush said in his first statement following the attacks on 9/11. Likewise, Hollande had this to say the Friday after the attacks on Paris: “Faced with terror, France must be strong, it must be great and the state authorities must be firm. We will be”. It is clear that both leaders meant to reassure their people and show their enemies that they have been bruised but not broken, which is undoubtedly a smart move on their part. However, what comes next will be the true test of whether or not we can learn from our mistakes.
Was unleashing the “war on terror” a mistake on Bush’s part? That’s not for me to say. I’m a 19-year-old college student, I was 5 when 9/11 happened, and though I vividly remember seeing it all happen on TV and talking about it in class with my teachers and friends, and being truly scared of what was to come, I am without a doubt not an expert. What I do know is that Bush, within a month, invaded the Middle East to take down Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda. While it’s too early to say what President Hollande will have accomplished within a month, he already has taken a vastly different approach. He announced a state of emergency, closed his country’s borders, and mobilized the military. Instead of immediately launching a war, he says, “In these difficult moments, we must—and I'm thinking of the many victims, their families and the injured—show compassion and solidarity. But we must also show unity and calm”. If a full blown war is the answer for France, it’s really too soon to tell only a week after everything has happened, but I think that President Hollande is already showing promising steps towards not following in the footsteps of former President Bush.
In addition to maintaining a seemingly level-headed view on war and remaining adamant on taking these terrorists down, he has also kept a level head on his policy regarding the refugees from the Middle East, which is extremely different than the viewpoint of many American politicians. Despite outward appearances, these refugees are being forced out of their countries by the same terrorists who have attacked us in the past and now France. WHY would the thought of turning these people away even cross our minds?
Whether you are Christian or not, religious or not, the principles of the parable “The Good Samaritan” can be applied to our current situation. The reason that this Samaritan was seen as so good was not simply because he helped a man in need, but because at this time in history the hatred between the Jews and the Samaritans was so immense that a Samaritan helping this man on the street would be unheard of. The moral of the story is that when you see someone that desperately needs your help, you help him or her, no matter what they might look like or what other people might say about them. Be the bigger person. We, as Americans, as French, as anyone else in the world are better than terrorists. We are not here to, essentially, kill these refugees because by not accepting them into our country we are dooming them to cling on to the very, very thin threads of life that they still have in their home country. We are here to help innocent people even if you personally don’t think they deserve it. It doesn’t matter if they deserve it or not. They need our help and we have to be the people to help them.
I think it is important to remember that the United States turned Jewish people away before the holocaust out of fear that there might be German spies mixed in the bunch—and then Hitler killed a little under six million. It is time for us to learn from our mistakes as opposed to repeating them. We need to stop being self-centered out of fear, and trust that doing the right thing will bring us more success than worrying so much about the safety of our nation that we turn away people in desperate need. For me, I’d rather risk my safety and be able to sleep at night knowing I did the right thing then turn people away for my own personal survival and go to sleep knowing that I was in part responsible for the deaths of so many. Remember that if terrorists are going to attack us they’ll do it whether we accept the refugees into our country or not. Shout out to FDR for providing us with the legendary quote, “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself,” in his inaugural address in 1933. But it’s time we actually start living by it.
