Abstract
There are different political philosophies about the responsibilities of states regarding whether to accept refugees. While there is a political philosophy that might be called Nationalist in perspective that says, essentially, “Not my problem,” the predominant philosophy globally is different, underscored by the U.S. being a signatory to the 1951 “Geneva Convention” on refugees and the 1967 protocol for the Status of refugees. That philosophy says that the refugee crisis is a global problem, people are in need, and we have the capacity to help. The reasoning behind this latter view recognizes that the benefit to others in accepting refugees is a matter of life and death, and the sacrifice to countries who accept them is, in the long run, minimal. In such cases, ethics says, we should act. And while states will vary in the degree to which they will take in those in need, there is global consensus that if countries with the capacity to help do not, an unfair burden is imposed on the countries who do. As the Polish sociologist and philosopher Zygmunt Bauman said, “Humanity is in crisis. There is no exit from that crisis other than the solidarity of humans”.