Louise Pentland and Lily Melrose are among those who have spoken up about the European Refugee crisis, pleading to their audiences to help out in any way they can.
In Sprinklerinos Can Help Syrian Refugees, Louise says: “I can go weeks with never looking at the news if I wanted to… but over the last few days I’ve been actively researching the Syrian refugee crisis and my heart breaks. Predominantly my heart breaks for the mothers, because I’m a mother, so I think I can relate to that the most.”
Louise imagines what it would be like if she and her daughter Darcy were in that position, admitting “it’s an unbearable thought” for her.
Linking out to an article from the Independent that lists practical ways people can, Louise encourages her audience to donate instead of purchasing her book or an item from her clothing line.
“Nobody enjoys hearing about great sadness in the world but I think that it’s important, but also it’s my duty to stand up and say these things because it’s such a privilege to have this digital podium,” she says.
Equally as impassioned, Lilly points out the main differences between a refugee and a migrant in On A Serious Note… Please Help!. “Refugees have no choice but to leave their homes, migrants are people who leave through choice,” she says.
She also shares her candid opinions of those who demonise refugees and pleads for support. “I’m gunna generalise here but we probably all live pretty safe first world lives… and these people don’t,” says Lily.
Lily encourages her followers to buy things that the refugees need – such as shoes, jackets, tents and cookware – from an Amazon Wishlist which she links to in the description. The Wishlist has now closed due to overwhelming support.
John Green has also tackled the subject in Understanding the Refugee Crisis in Europe, Syria, and around the World, in which he gives wider context to the crisis.
Together they join Benjamin Cook and Jack Howard, who visited Syrian refugee camps in Jordan with Oxfam in 2013, resulting in Ben’s The War of The Word and Jack’s The Syria Challenge.
To find out more, or to donate to the Save the Children’s Child Refugee Crisis Appeal, click here.
