What I Want to Say to my Yazidi Friends

A tragically sad anniversary is today. Today is the 5th anniversary of the genocide committed against the Yazidi people in Iraq by terrorists. Thousands were killed in one day. Women and children were kidnapped and forced into unthinkably horrific situations.

My home city of Lincoln has the largest number of Yazidis in North America. I have been blessed to share meals in their homes, have them in my English classes, join them for fun celebrations, and enjoy their friendship. I learned how to greet my Yazidi friends by saying Hello my friend in their language, so I can try to make them feel welcome.

A few things I wish to say to my Yazidi friends today.

1-Building Your New Life Here Will Honor Them. What I mean by that message is that my friends are safe here and they can build a new life. Their children can go to school here where their religion is not a factor. They and their children can have new lives and a future. By doing so, they can honor their lost loved ones and friends.

2- Your dream is not over. It is on a different path. In your home country you had dreams about life and the future. You can still have your dreams just in a different place and on a different path far away from the violence.

3- I love my Yazidi friends.

4- I stand with you.

5- I know God loves you. Jesus said, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son, so that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life,”