StC News
William Rodriguez '18 finalist for Times-Dispatch Correspondent of the Year
Rodriguez urged Americans not to let the fear of terrorism deter the country from welcoming refugees.
William's letter appeared in the Richmond Times-Dispatch on Thursday, December 4, 2015
Editor, Times-Dispatch:
Mike Carroll’s letter, “One bad candy spoils the bunch,” criticized the refugee crisis by rhetorically asking President Obama if he would still be willing to let his children reach into a bowl of 10,000 M&Ms if one was poisoned. Carroll wrote that the president should grow up.
This is an example of the unnerving cowardice displayed by Americans in recent months. Living in a free and tolerant society has risks, and the risk of being killed by a terrorist is far lower than the chance of dying by gun violence, or cigarettes or texting while driving.
The risk of terrorists accompanying 10,000 or 100,000 carefully screened refugees is far outweighed by the benefits of having a Muslim population finally feeling welcome and saying good things about the hospitality of the United States, as well as creating new businesses.
The people who seem to be concerned about the risk of terrorism fail to consider that the refugees are just searching for a place to be safe. If we turn them away, and the refugees are forced back to their war-torn countries of origin, they may turn to terrorist groups for safety and become one of them. This is a severe risk, one which could create a far more serious threat to the well-being of Americans.
Accepting risks is a price one must pay for living in a free society. If we continue to be frightened by those who are different from us and ask the government to wall off those who may or may not be threats, we will begin to lose the freedoms we so frequently exalt.
William Rodriguez,
Sophomore,
St. Christopher’s School.
Richmond.
Richmond Times-Dispatch Articles:
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Editor, Times-Dispatch:
Mike Carroll’s letter, “One bad candy spoils the bunch,” criticized the refugee crisis by rhetorically asking President Obama if he would still be willing to let his children reach into a bowl of 10,000 M&Ms if one was poisoned. Carroll wrote that the president should grow up.
This is an example of the unnerving cowardice displayed by Americans in recent months. Living in a free and tolerant society has risks, and the risk of being killed by a terrorist is far lower than the chance of dying by gun violence, or cigarettes or texting while driving.
The risk of terrorists accompanying 10,000 or 100,000 carefully screened refugees is far outweighed by the benefits of having a Muslim population finally feeling welcome and saying good things about the hospitality of the United States, as well as creating new businesses.
The people who seem to be concerned about the risk of terrorism fail to consider that the refugees are just searching for a place to be safe. If we turn them away, and the refugees are forced back to their war-torn countries of origin, they may turn to terrorist groups for safety and become one of them. This is a severe risk, one which could create a far more serious threat to the well-being of Americans.
Accepting risks is a price one must pay for living in a free society. If we continue to be frightened by those who are different from us and ask the government to wall off those who may or may not be threats, we will begin to lose the freedoms we so frequently exalt.
William Rodriguez,
Sophomore,
St. Christopher’s School.
Richmond.
Richmond Times-Dispatch Articles:
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