The Syrian refugee crisis has made its way onto every television at home, into countless newspapers, and has been plastered over social media. With haunting photos from the capsized boat that killed twelve,  and even more pictures of refugees trying to escape to multiple countries to escape persecution in their own, it is evident that something must be done.

But what is America’s position in all of this? Secretary of State John Kerry has stated that the U.S. plans to take in 85,000 refugees in 2016 and 100,000 in 2017, in order to help aid the situation. But many wonder if that is enough, as other countries plan to take in even more, which many have argued it’s because of the other countries proximity to Syria. For example, Germany announced that they expect 800,000-1 million immigrants in their country in this year alone.

Current student at Bob Jones and student teacher Tyler Bullard stated, “I do think the Obama Administration’s efforts to aid those in need at this point is a great step and that accepting 85,000 refugees is what’s best to assist […] Overall, I would expect to see a higher number of refugees […] The Obama Administration, in opinion, is gradually allowing this small number so that it won’t face retaliation from the anti-foreigner GOP Congress.”

Fellow student Jordan Cozby has said in response to the crisis, “I think the U.S. action to take more refugees is a welcome process, but we must do more. Millions of people are in need and the international community must fully support the resettlement process. This is an area where the U.S. should be a leader and set a positive example.”

While it would greatly relieve the situation with the U.S. taking in more refugees and open the door for even more countries to accept more refugees, there are some who argue that it is not entirely safe. While the majority of the refugees are Syrian, there are also Africans and other Middle Easters in the mix. There is an argument that there is a large risk the U.S. could be allowing terrorists into the U.S, as some of the areas these refugees are coming from have been associated with Al Qaeda.

Retired Bob Jones History teacher, Mr. Seeley addressed his opinion of that doubt with, “This shouldn’t be an issue– and is so, only because of the current toxic political climate we are in. I believe that […] the idea that all Muslims are evil and dangerous and members of ISIS/ISIL/Daesh, and the notion that those people (Syrians) are ALL Muslims have been conflated to make almost any ‘foreigner’ unacceptable to bring into the country. The number of 85, 000 is far too low given the degree of responsibility the U.S.  has is contributing to the environment that has caused the refugee crisis. Do not take that as me saying that the U.S. caused the conditions in Syria, but we have become heavily involved, and that lays a degree of responsibility on our doorstep.”

When asked about America’s stance on the issue and Kerry’s statement regarding how many refugees the U.S. will take in, Mr. Seeley responded, “The very low number of refugees that we will accept– in contrast to some of our European counterparts–does not seem to live up to the perception we want the world to have of the United States, unfortunately and doesn’t match our past efforts.”

While the U.S has taken a step to help aid in this world wide situation, it is not nearly as big of a step as some of our European counterparts, but the underlying question is if that is all the U.S. can handle at this time or if the U.S. is more than capable of taking in more refugees, but also is it the U.S.’s obligation to help (even more) these immigrants or has the U.S. helped more than enough already by accepting the 85,000 immigrants in the next year. For more information and quick facts, see piktochart below.

(For full size image click here)