Myth-Busting Through Film

February 8th, the IRC in Sacramento hosted a screening of the documentary film 8 Borders, 8 Days at the 24th Street Theater. Following the film itself, IRC staffers answered questions from the audience around myths and misconceptions that are commonly believed about refugee resettlement, and in particular around the Syrian refugee crisis. The 60 minute documentary follows the path of a Syrian mother and her two children as they flee across 8 borders to find safety in a German refugee center, an increasingly common story for Syrian families.
 
Refugee resettlement currently faces a crisis in the United States. With the travel ban and a historically low refugee cap, the IRC is predicting that only 21,292 refugees will be resettled in the United States this year, 77% below the historic average. Syrian refugees are some of the most affected by this shift. Last year by the end of January thousands of Syrian refugees had been resettled in the U.S.--this year that number is thirty-four. The Syrian mother in 8 Borders, 8 Days was denied resettlement to the U.S. forcing her to take a raft across the sea with her children. While they have reached safety at a German refugee center, they are left unable to plan for the future. Refugee families in camps can be left in limbo, safe but without freedom. Waiting for an opportunity to start their lives, many of them are unable to work or send their children to school.

These types of community events give us a chance to bring awareness to the refugee crisis, break down and discuss fear people might have thanks to misinformation about refugees, and help make #RefugeesWelcome.