A boat floats alone in the ocean. In it, a group of people are packed to the brim, with no space to move around and barely any food. The boat precariously bounces against the waves, seemingly about to sink at any moment. They hope to leave their painful lives behind, but first they must conquer an ocean.

This is the reality of many refugees who flee their countries looking for a better life. Many areas of the world are a cesspool of wars, rebellion and fear. In countries like Syria and Yemen, the quality of life is low with thousands dying per year according to the New York Times.

Refugees have become a major political discussion point in the past few years, with the central argument being over what a country’s obligation, if any, to help refugees should be. Most conservatives traditionally argue that the U.S. should highly limit or eliminate the amount of refugees brought into the country due to a fear of terrorist attacks as the country deals with a variety of threats internationally. Many liberals, on the other hand, believe it is the countries’ duty to help those that seek a shelter in the country, no matter where they come from.

Syria is one of the worst places to live by a significant margin. A brutal civil war continues to rage on as thousands of Syrian civilians are killed. An important point to note is most of these people, especially older ones, love their country and don’t want to leave. However, when all options are exhausted only one remains: to flee the country and try to find a new place to call home.

Those who suggest these refugees are trying to “invade” the United States and take jobs don’t realize that most of these refugees don’t want to have to leave their countries. Their entire histories lie in these places and it’s often very difficult to leave home.

Refugees have existed throughout history in many different cultures. AP United States History teacher Caitlin Jozefczyk helped to trace the many ways in which refugees have been treated throughout history.

“Basically every way of immigration people were treated poorly,” Ms. Jozefczyk said.“For example, in the early 1800s, when the Irish were coming over during the Potato Famine … they were basically pushed down and treated terribly.”

West Essex students also had their own opinions on whether the US should be in the business of assisting refugees in finding new life in the country.

Across the United States, fewer and fewer people believe that the country should take in refugees, according to a May 2018 USA Today article. the number of Republicans who believe that the country should accept refugees has dropped from 35 percent to 26 percent. This dip coincided with the Trump administration’s policy on lowering the amount of refugees accepted into the United States each year. Whereas numbers in previous years have been higher, this dip is worrying for those attempting to flee to the U.S.

“Distrust of immigrants has been always been a prevailing way of thinking; even in the past, people were worried about job competition and that the people coming here didn’t have the same American values,” Ms. Jozefczyk said.

Living a life free of war, threat of death or poverty and generally peaceful is common goal among people. For a person to leave their home and flee to another world takes bravery and only comes when their hand is forced. Refugees are not here to invade our country, destroy our customs and disrupt our lives. They are here to live a life free from fear. They are owed at least a fair chance at a happy, successful life, much like we are.