Earlier you may have read of the young man from Mali, Maumoudou Gassama, who climbed four stories up a building’s facade to rescue a kid who was dangling from a balcony. He certainly earned his new nickname. This story is one with an even happier ending.
You see, Gassama is not in France legally and has had a rough go of it since migrating a few months ago. Given his tenuous position, the expedient thing to do would have been to keep his head down and not intervene. After all, getting involved would draw attention to him and lead to his deportation. Thankfully for the child, Gassama did not take the easy way out. And more thankfully for Gassama, deportation is not in the cards. Instead, it appears his citizenship request will be granted.
This is good news for Gassama, but his happy ending is in sharp relief to what awaits many immigrants if the restrictive immigration bill that was recently passed in Parliament becomes law (which is probably the safe bet). Making life harder for immigrants is expedient, and it is easy for us in the US and elsewhere to keep our heads down and remain silent while families are separated, children are lost, and human dignity is forgotten. Let’s not take the expedient way out.