This week in our ASTU class we talked continued our talk on 9/11 in relation to scholar, Judith Butler. Her book called Frames of War, introduces the idea of who we grieve says who we see as valuable in society. I have used this theory to look at the war in Syria right now, and how we don’t hear much about what is going on. Is this because the lives that are being lost are not Westerners? Or maybe because the country is rooted in Islamic beliefs which don’t align to the western world. Whatever it may be, it makes us question our values and ask why do we hear so much about trivial things such as fake news and not enough about real news and life in other countries? In an article by the Washington Post they briefly give a reason why the U.S hasn’t intervened, “White House staff have consistently viewed the payoffs from action as uncertain, the potential benefits as low and the likely costs as unacceptably high”. In this article they are rating people’s lives on the cost it would be to the country whether to help them or not. This lens of looking at intervention detaches any sentimental feelings one may have to the plain cost efficiency of a country. In light of knowing that the U.S does not want to allocate funds to help the Syrian people, the question of should the U.S intervene in the first place, arises. Is it in our prerogative to actively help these people? I see the situation as only being acceptable if the citizens of Syria are asking for our help, then we should intervene. In the case of the Bosnian genocide, we read a graphic narrative by Joe Sacco that showed us how Bosnian citizens wanted the U.S to intervene. This may be the case in Syria as well, if it is, then we should answer the call for help.

Turning our attention to the United Nations, if the U.S finds it too costly to intervene, why has the United Nations not done more? After all, the whole basis of the U.N is to help in cases of humanitarian violations as seen from the U.N charter: “to achieve international co-operation in solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural, or humanitarian character”. As global citizens, we should feel the need to give help and support to anyone in need no matter the country they may live in. Since we live in such an interconnected world, why haven’t we done more for the Syrians? Why aren’t we grieving or fretting about the situation in Syria? The boundaries of countries should not bound our empathy as well. As humans all connected in this world, we should do more for each other in times of need.

Works Cited

Butler, Judith. Frames of War: When Is Life Grievable? London: Verso, 2016. Print.

“Deliver Humanitarian Aid.” United Nations. United Nations, n.d. Web. 16 Feb. 2017.

Heydemann, Steven. “Why the United States Hasn’t Intervened in Syria.” The Washington Post. WP Company, 14 Mar. 2016. Web. 16 Feb. 2017.