=AtG=
Syrian refugees resettled in Alberta have collaborated to contribute donations to the massive wildfire evacuees, which now include folks from Anzac, Gregoire Lake Estates, and Fort McMurray First Nation:
Khanchet and her family know first-hand how scary it is to leave a community, home and possessions behind, and she was determined to help the people of Fort McMurray.
“It’s not easy to lose everything. We can understand them more than anyone in Canada. We were in the same situation,” said Khanchet, who lives in Calgary.
“Me and my family wanted to do something for these people. Canadian society helped us when we came to Canada.”
Syrian refugees across Calgary are now giving what little they have to northern Albertans, after Khanchet posted an appeal in Arabic on a private Facebook group the newcomers created and frequent.
“(Canadians) gave us everything. And now it’s time to return the favour,” she wrote.
Now I can bubble with national pride. This, right here. This is Canada.
The evacuees number up to 88,000 now. The province has declared a state of emergency, and the military is on standby for emergency evacuations. The fire now spans over 160,000 hectares of forest. You can apparently see it from space.
Reminder that if you have the means, you can support the relief efforts here.
Still zero fatalities.
-Shiv
This is why Canada calls itself a mosaic, not a “melting pot” like the US. A space was made for the Syrians to be fitted into the whole, and they did.
And yet there are still whining about the refugees, and that “especially now we need to take care of our own!”
Unfortunately there was a fatality on Wednesday from a traffic accident .
@abear Last I heard, there wasn’t a clear connection to the evacuation and that particular accident.
Story is here: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/2-die-in-fiery-crash-on-highway-881-south-of-fort-mcmurray-1.3567142
Also: @tabby #2
Don’t forget about taxes. They’re also bitching about taxes. You know, the thing paying for their preloaded debit cards from the government? The thing bailing them out and insuring them when the private companies screw them over?
Oh gods yes, Siobhan. And lets not forget that people have been complaining about wait times in hospitals or for medical procedures, but then they keep voting in people who want to cut taxes and slash health care spending. We finally have a government who wants to stem the bleeding, and they are losing their minds.