From the British People

I wrote this piece earlier in the week and have spent the whole week debating 'do I post, don't I post?' I'm worried about offending people, or being misunderstood. In the end I decided to go for it, and I hope you can read it knowing that I have struggled on this and honestly don't want to offend.

I don't normally get too in to politics. I have my own views but I do not enjoy political debate, and in recent years I've found it incredibly intimidating the way social media has controlled the conversation - when you're on the other side of the fence as it were, it's suddenly safer to keep quiet than to be ridiculed and ostracized by those who are genuine friends. The popular social media messaging around hot topics in the UK has left me feeling fairly gagged when I often disagree but can't face the fall out of owning up to my opinions.

But then this week has been so mental in terms of crazy politics. I can't seem to get my head around how utterly awful Trump really is. I am so angry that so many are aligning themselves with him in the name of faith. A faith that I supposedly share with them. It has got me thinking about the importance of politics and advocacy on the issues that I would consider black and white. Like the right to claim asylum, the right not to be discriminated against because of race, colour, religion, ethnicity, gender.

The rhetoric coming out of the US this week has been so shocking; rhetoric of fear of our neighbour, unwillingness to share the global burden of the effects of war, poverty and power imbalances. The abuse of power, and the hiding behind the old classic of 'security' in order to pursue racist and selfish policies at the cost of so much. It has been deeply concerning for so many of us to watch as the new administration enacts policies that are so divisive and so horribly offensive, not to mention short sighted. It is easy to allow ourselves to think that American politics speak for the western world and to feel hopeless.

But then, this week in our camp, I noticed that our tents have new donor signs sprayed on to them. And given the messages Trump has been touting, I was pretty proud to see 'UK Aid - From the British People'. So in other words, a teeny tiny part of my government's overseas aid funding had bought these tents which are offering some refuge to those who have fled their war-torn homes. And I am reminded that Trump doesn't rule the world; yes, we must speak out against his unjust and biased policies, but we must also remember that he is just one of many global leaders; many of whom are as horrified by him as we are. Let's keep petitioning our own governments to stand up for what is right. Let's keep using our collective voice to speak for those who have no voice. This is not a faith issue, it's not a security issue, it's a humanitarian issue.