Syrian Refugee Crisis Photo: UNRWA via AP, File

Edgewater and Andersonville have a long history in which immigrants have made our community their home. It has been an area rich in diversity and has always had an attitude favoring inclusion.

On Thursday, 48th Ward Ald. Harry Osterman joined many of his City Council colleagues in sponsoring a non-binding resolution to continue accepting Syrian refugees into the Illinois. This came after Bruce Rauner joined over half of our nation’s governors in favor of temporarily halting new Syrian refugees into their states.

The resolution which states that Chicago is proud of its ethnically diverse population consisting of people from 140 countries, reaffirmed its commitment to serve as a sanctuary city when it adopted the “Welcoming City Ordinance” in 2012. It also continued to highlight the Syrian crisis and its 7 million displaced refugees, boldly stating not to ignore it.

In an statement today, Ald. Osterman said, “Diversity is the strength of our wonderful community. Immigrants and refugees from every corner of the world have long been part of the special mosaic that makes our neighborhood a great place to live, and their many contributions have helped make our community what it is today.”

Over last weekend, terrorist attacks in Paris caused panic throughout Europe.  Since then, many countries have re-evaluated acceptance of refugees from Syria. Over the past week, President Obama has voiced his commitment of allowing those refugees into the US.