Anti Xenophobia Speech

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Good Morning Trinityhouse Highschool, my name is Caitlin Rajchrt and I am apart of the anti-xenophobia campaign, AXASA.

Imagine waking up to the sound of a terrified scream. A scream that echoes in the dead of the night. You look outside your window to find your brother, hands tied behind his back, stripped of both clothing and pride, inside a tire being burned alive. Only because he is a foreigner. How would that make you feel? This is an example of an act of xenophobia. Just like any other ‘phobia’, xenophobia is a deep fear. It is the fear and dislike of people from other countries or origins, it is the perceived threat of losing your identity due to the presence of foreigners.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that everyone has the right to be treated equally and that everyone is equally entitled to human rights. Xenophobes deny the right of equality to foreigners, foreigners are generally discriminated against by being denied many other rights such as access to work or to education. What about the right to life? Thousands of people have lost their lives due to xenophobia.

Is there an underlying cause for xenophobia? Well, just like all phobias, there is not just one specific cause that leads to the development of the phobia. Rather, there are numerous factors and experiences that aid in developing the disorder. And that’s exactly what xenophobia is, a disorder. It’s not the same as racism or prejudice, it can hold elements of racism, but all in all,

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