Most people are aware of what's going on in Aleppo right now. It's probably all over your Facebook feed: sad videos of bloody children and people video taping their last words. It's heartbreaking and it probably definitely wants to make you help them in any way you can. That probably seems absolutely impossible, though. You're six thousand miles and a sea away and a lot of us that want to help don't have enough money to pay our water bill, let alone go to another country and help out. Here are some things you can still do.
1. Donate to actually helpful charities.
It's hard, these days, to find charities you can trust and I don't blame you. I always feel rude saying no, but when people ask me if I'd like to give my extra money to their charity, I don't know if they're credible or if my money is going to some CEO's pocket.
A few credible places to donate are:
http://www.savethechildren.org/site/c.8rKLIXMGIpI4...
http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/
https://donate.unrefugees.org/ea-action/action?ea....
Donate anything you can. Your donation could save lives. If you can't donate, there's still things you can do.
2. Create or attend a protest.
Showing your solidarity for Aleppo means more than you think it does. Don't believe that protesting and rallying achieves nothing. Some of the US's greatest social movements were successful through the use of this. If you get the attention of the country, then outrage will come and with attention and outrage, usually comes action.
3. Stay educated and educate those around you.
I still don't know exactly everything going on over there and it's difficult to with all of the different news sources and the opinions controlling them. But once you understand the murder and violent evictions, your heart will break. Unfortunately, in order to help, it needs to. It's not a party pleaser, but people still need to know what's going on. Don't be afraid to tell people that not bringing the mood down is not more important than what's happening in Aleppo. This is real, these are real people and if your friends can help, they should.
There are people dying and too many people have lost hope. It's the sad reality of what's happening in Aleppo, and despite your opinions on political issues, mass murder of people and seizure of their land is not acceptable. Even if you can't get involved in directly fighting the Syrian government (and now the Russian government), you can still help the people that need it.
