For One Rohingya Family, I Hoped for Redemption. That Hope Was Dashed.

and last night our president took credit for saving us from the evil of holiday well wishing.

"Never Again" continues to happen.

According to Al Jazeeera the Rohingya are an ethnic group, majority of whom are Muslim, who have lived for centuries in the majority Buddhist Myanmar. The New York Times exists to inform educate and influence its large audience of subscribers (like myself), casual readers and the general population and sell advertising (ie the media business). That said, it may still be a beneficial goal to let your readers if you have an article about the Rohingya, to let the reader know who are these people. These long articles with great flair and drama often don't provide this this basic information. We then wonder, why doesn't anybody care or do something. Why don't we call it a Genocide ? or should we debate about it in earnestness 100 years later (like the Armenians and many others). In the news and advertising business it makes sense to omit this accurate description. Reader on the right beware, reader of the left beware, nothing like a straight pitch down the middle. When a community is threatened to be wiped out, displaced, if they are one of your its a Genocide. if its in a far a away place where we have never met a person from there, eaten their food then it is "whatever". Why so? Lots of people profess (proudly) to be Buddhist. The ethnic majority in Burma is Buddhist. The Dalai Lama is a Buddhist. Muslims killing Muslims we get that. The regime of Nobel Peace prize winner persecuting Muslims. Would be funny if not a joke.

Creative empaths & light workers are confronting this crisis. In the hands of experienced theater artists statements--poetic & prophetic-- are being attempted. This is an apt iconic metaphor for the schism in our world between grace & barbarity. The polarization of faiths. It gives credibility to Madam Blavatsky s notion that organized religion killed spirituality. In the Arizona desert in Cave Creek Playwrights Sanctuary under direction of St John's University Dr. Larry Myers is igniting the "#Ialso" movement. Myers has visited trouble spots -- Las Vegas, Napa Valley, Charlottesville Florida, Houston writing about resistance theater. Feeling we must now write plays faster than speed of light, sound, fire, gunfire & rape & violation, he has taken #metoo steps further. His "Myanmar Melee" opens soon in one of his "also locales of his tri coastal theater foundation.. Stating #metoo is grammatically incorrect he wrote his own "Triumph of the Other Isis" but is working with Navajos understanding Burma citizenry s plight in a parallel context. He warns dramatists & all mustn t be trapped up by words but must contact pure Spirt for answers.

No one is paying attention, or demanding action, in part because "news" like the Miss America scandal, is more prominently displayed in the media, like on the NYT web page today!

If I were in charge, this is what I'd do: First, resettled the refugees in Bangladesh with moneys hopefully coming from their over 1 B Muslim brethren all over the world, , then bring the Myanmar generals to the International Court in the Hague, lock them in and throw away the keys.

Please send wishes of hope and love from America on this blessed day.

On this christmas eve, the picture of her husband helping her out of the boat is the 21st century Flight to Egypt a boat not a donkey carrying a family away fron cruelty, indifference and terror.

One sided propaganda. the "Rohingya Muslims" have been violently trying to create a separate Islamic Republic or get a giant piece of Myanmar merged with the neighboring Islamic Republic of Pakistan ever since the 1940s https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rohingya_insurgency_in_Western_Myanmar  Despite this, Myanmar allowed these people to remain in the country.  Myanmar issued a 2-child policy on the Rohingya Muslims but they refused to follow it and the Rohingya Muslim women continued to give birth to 8+ babies each, rapidly outbreeding the low fertility rate of Myanmar's Buddhist women who only gave birth to 1-2 children on average. The expelling of the r-Muslims finally happened AFTER a young Burmese Buddhist girl was kidnapped, gang raped, &murdered by a group of Rohingya Muslims living in Myanmar. When authorities tried to arrest these criminals and the leaders of the violent separatist groups for their crimes, those criminals were continuously hidden &protected by the Rohingya Muslim community. THAT incident is when chaos broke loose. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-18395788 The reason for Myanmar's reaction is bc Afghanistan, Tarim Basin(Xinjiang) China, Central Asia, and many parts of Pakistan were Buddhist lands before Muslims invaded & forcefully converted everyone to Islam.   & when Muslims invaded India, they even burned down "Nalanda" the most famous Buddhist monastery in the world.

Thank you and the New York Times for your unflagging coverage of events to which most world leaders are turning a blind eye, much to their historic shame.

Thank you for documenting their plight and for your own heart of compassion.

NYT: thank you for covering this story at all. It's an important story! Mr Solomon: huge thanks to you and the team who made this story possible. You work with integrity and with respect and with passion for the story and these people and this family. My heart just breaks for this family and for the thousands of other Rohingya families who have similar stories. **Time to do some major year end giving to the groups offering care and support to the Rohingya such as Doctors without Borders**

Really? Had Ranjuma wanted to be married to a man fifteen years older than she? How old was she on her wedding day? Was Nor Hossain able to support three children, plus a wife, and a mother? Will Bangladesh treat the Rohingya with the same mercy they've shown to the so-called Biharis? Those people unlucky enough to have thrown their lot in with Pakistan and to have spent how many generations now in miserable refugee camps where they are stateless? There are many reasons why the miserably poor are miserably poor, and some of those are beyond their control, but some of them are due to terrible life choices in this, what is supposed to be a modern world. Perhaps if the Saudis stopped financing madrassas and spent a wee little tiny fraction of their wealth on improving the lives of these, some of the least of their brethren, there might be some real hope. Or perhaps that new branch of the Louvre could've shifted onto the back burner while the Gulf mega-millionaires took care of some more immediate concerns in the world. Sorry. I'm immune to this stuff now. I've seen too much of it and know what the remedies can be. They needn't come from us. There are deeper pockets available.

Thank you for this fine reporting, Ben Solomon, and for sharing your despair. I commend the Times for its continued coverage of the tragedy unfolding here, and for placing so much emphasis on these personal and heartbreaking stories. The Rohingya crisis is nothing short of genocide and Myanmar's failure to acknowledge and act on it is nothing short of criminal.

The power of story-telling touches more hearts than numbers and facts. This is such important work for all its heartbreak. Still, we must multiply by the millions of families who have become refugees without hardening our souls to inaction. It is Myanmar that is responsible at a time when our President states so easily he does not care... about brown people, in America and around the world. Tell us, to whom may we contribute to benefit these families who are so alone in this world. To whom do we direct our noise?

Mr. Solomon, you gave the family's dead child a voice louder than his parents could have ever imagined. It's being heard all over the globe. It's a sad, sad, voice, but more powerful than anyone can know. Thank you, and the Times.

Horrible but how is it the fault of the world, or even Bangladesh? It's the fault of the government in Myanmar. That's where the problem must be solved.

Humanity needs to start looking at the forest as a whole - and not the individual trees. Everywhere in the world, too many humans are using up ever diminishing resources. Even America, the richest country in the world is considering building a wall and limiting immigration. Religious leaders and nationalists use these times to keep out or drive out the minorities. It is long past time for humans to begin limiting their numbers. It may already be too late, according to some scientists - and expect to see very many more of these stories lacking 'redemption' as the resources disappear.

This tragedy is difficult to read about, I can't imagine the trauma of living through it. I can't help being angry at the globalist, neo-liberal and libertarian power brokers who have become exceedingly wealthy while paying lip service to climate change and the living conditions of most of humanity. Those who are rich believe it's somehow from their brilliance or exceptional status when in fact they are making money by consuming and appropriating resources and paying off our politicians, who are failing us.

I only feel pure guilt for my privileged life after reading this story. So raw, plain and harshly real. Thanks for sharing. I wish there was a way to help this family out...

It is heart wrenching to hear and read about the plight of the Rohingyas who face persecution during strange times of today. All international actors went easy on Myanmar because they recently came out of military junta dictatorship and making Nobel peace price winner Aung San Suu Kyi the face of the government despite tremendous human right abuses by the regime. On the other front ISIS and obsession with it through Trump election means the regime was able to fake equate Rohingyas with ISIS and escape scrutiny. Of course fee of the Rohingya militant elements miscalculated the regime’s determination by trying to fight back. There is a major element of racism as well as Rohingyas are dark skinned and Muslim in Myanmar. Skin color discrimation runs strong in Asia. That said strong U.N. pressure needs to be placed on Myanmar including sanctions and potentially the Peace prize winner need to be denounced to eliminate the cloak of this brutality. International aid to build health care and schools and basic living conditions has to be a priority as well as Bangladesh being a poor country can’t support the refugees.

Every time I hear of the Rohingya plight, I cry. This is heart wrenching.

It is beyond heartbreaking. The brutality of man against man knows no boundaries, it seems. Ben, what can we average citizens do besides donate money to the appropriate organizations? It is a situation for which words have not been invented.

As painful it is to watch the video and read about the Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh, there is another aspect that cannot be ignored. Rohingyas do not practice birth control at all. In fact they are hardly aware of it. Bangladeshi medical professionals have been trying to introduce them to birth control and based on the BD news media have largely failed. There are families with 8-10 children. Ranjuma, like many other women in the that awful camp, will get pregnant again, even as it will be very difficult for them to raise their existing children. How can we prevent the misfortunes that are yet to come? This is not a cultural superiority complex or misunderstanding. Anyone who has seen photographs of Muslim refugees running away from violence could not have missed the very large number of children per family. Helping them is our obligation, but perhaps that help has to also include providing information about birth control [as mentioned above, Muslim majority Bangladesh is already trying this.]

Thank you for sharing your story. Thank you Ranjuma and Nor for your courage in sharing your experience. I hope you find peace and a better life.

Thank you for telling this heartbreaking story.

This story made my heart melt. It made me think of how incredible the human spirit is in spite of challenges. My condolences to this beautiful family of courage and strength. My prayer is that they will find joy and peace in their journey. This story was so beautifully documented. Thank you.

I know it is not currently politically correct, but is there some way we can bring in these half-million refugees and let them live the American Dream? That is what our country is all about, after all.

While this is a heartbreaking story I don't understand why you didn't pry open your wallet and help out the poor family. Surely the New York Times has a few bucks lying around. Pass the hat around the office. What what we normal people do when we find a family in need. We don't just export them for a news story.

Thank you, Ranjuma and Nor, for sharing your story. As one American among millions, as one person among billions, I see you. May you find peace.

Heartbreaking story not only of the family but of the Rohingya people. Thank you for reporting this and may it make us all more thankful for what we have and more willing to share with those who have not.

Thank you for the diligent and touching reporting. I am moved beyond words as I reflect on the Rohingya, the holiday season, and what it means to be a citizen of the USA.

True journalists shares facts -- good or bad. More photos and less personal opinions will help people learn and choose, dark, white, or grey. Good job! This is Times!

Thanks for your thoughtful coverage of this crisis, Ben. The article is incredible. As an American, in comparison to the Rohingya, I live a luxurious life and it's difficult to relate what it must be like to flee your homeland with nothing, walk to another country, and simply, hope for the best. Thanks to your dedication, we can all get a taste of that experience. It isn't pleasant. It reminds me that there are human beings out there exactly the same as me. And they are exploited, raped, tortured, and burned out of their homes. How can we as their brothers and sisters watch and do nothing? Thank you for continuing to bring this important reminder to our attention.

This was beyond hard to watch and have to say thank you to the Times for putting this in the forefront. How do so many let go of so much basic humanity?We are such an a**hole species...ruining the planet, ruining each other, the list is endless...