In 2011, antigovernment protests began in Syria and soon escalated into a civil war. Over the course of the past six years fighting in Syria has intensified sending approximately 11 million people seeking refuge in neighboring countries. As Syrians seek safety they flee to Lebanon, Turkey, Egypt, Iraq and Jordan who now struggle to support the overwhelming number of refugees. As these countries and refugees look for assistance, the United States is faced with the question of what to do. Along with the debate of what to do, Americans also question if the United States has a responsibility to help Syrian refugees. As “Essay on Syrian Refugees” points out, “This is not the matter of politics and economy, but of basic human rights” (Essay on Syrian …show more content…
This dependence occurs, at the very least, during the initial period after their arrival.” (Brown). Many Americans tend to believe that refugees guzzle the country’s government programs, resources, and care systems with nothing given in return to the United States government, economy or society. Political researcher, Studebaker begins to resolve this argument by his statement, as quoted previously, “In the United States, foreign born residents are estimated to contribute almost $19,000 more in tax receipts each decade than they consume in government benefits.” In terms of money, refugees give more to the country in which they reside than they consume. Per Studebaker, ” refugees and immigrants more than pay for their own public services. We do not have to worry about schools being overcrowded with foreign children, because foreigners will contribute more than enough revenue to pay for additional teachers and classrooms. We don’t have to worry about immigrants and refugees scrounging for welfare benefits, because they will work and be net contributors to the tax system on average.”