In one of our stories here today the plight of the refugees highlights how children are not immune from the brutality of police on a daily basis. See story “Refugees beaten, abused and tear-gassed as they sleep by police in Calais, report warns”.

The Independent UK has the exclusive story and it is not easy reading although I urge all our readers to do so. If you click on the web source you will find links to other stories The Independent is carrying:

Paris police stealing refugees’ blankets in freezing conditions
Child refugees in northern France ‘facing exploitation on daily basis’
Following the child refugee trail through the streets of Paris

The Independent story we have republished states:

“Ninety-seven per cent of the 89 children surveyed said they had experienced police violence in the area, with 79 per cent reporting being targeted with tear gas, 57 per cent with physical abuse and 21 per cent with verbal abuse. Such attacks were reported to be fairly routine, with two in every 10 children saying they were attacked with tear gas every day, and 41 per cent saying it occurred many times a week.

“The report found that while a significant proportion of the police violence is targeted at children as they try to go to the UK, there was also an alarming number of instances of unprovoked police violence – notably unaccompanied youngsters being woken up from where they are sleeping and told to move. Ninety-two per cent of respondents said this had happened to them, with 77 per cent of these describing it as a “violent” incident and 55 per cent saying they “felt scared” when it happened.

“An Eritrean boy, aged 17, told researchers: “Once in the middle of the night they threw tear gas on us, while we were sleeping under the bridge. Another time in the middle of the night, two police officers chased me and beat me with a baton and kicked me.”

“Similarly, a 17-year old Sudanese boy reported: “France police beat me in the middle night when I was alone,” while another said: “[The police] recognise me by my hair and they always come after me. They beat me up almost every day. I have had tear gas sprayed on me several times.”’

It is ironic that only yesterday evening (Sunday 24) I was giving a message that included children and I asked the question ‘why don’t we listen to them?’

I quoted the words of a song I used in my presentation by the Scottish singer/songwriter Isla Grant and had the track played:

The words are:

They are crying out for peace around the world
They are telling us to stop the hurt and pain
Their smiles can melt the coldest heart
Their tears can pull your world apart
Why don’t we listen to the children?

Why can’t you see the world their eyes can see
There is no room for hate or jealousy
And color means nothing to them
To a child another is a friend
Why don’t we listen to the children?

Why don’t we listen, to what they try to say
Make a world of peace for them to live in
Take a leaf out of the book
They read to us each day
Why don’t we learn a lesson from the children?

So everyone around the word join hands
And spread the word of love across the land
Rejoice and live in harmony
And pray that peace at last will be
They need the help of you and me, our children

They are crying out for peace around the world
They are telling us to stop the hurt and pain
Their smiles can melt the coldest heart
Their tears can pull your world apart
Why don’t we listen to the children?

Isla Grant “Listen to the Children”

I finished my message with this:

And when we have children we have hope from the time of their birth they will have fulfilling lives. Live long and well and accomplish their dreams even if they are not our dreams.

However, we live in a society today where our children exist in fear. They do not feel safe in school, at home or even in their churches. We have seen news stories where children are killing children, where babies are being used as financial negotiating tools, and where children have become the object of sexual desire and perversion. Child-care workers who make less money than fast-food employees are raising someone else’s children. Some teachers, make less money than grocery clerks do. Parents have become ghosts to their families, often letting an older sibling or complete strangers care for them. Today’s parents sometime use the TV, computer, or video games as baby sitting tools, figuring that they can have a few moments peace while the child is occupied. While television shows sometimes contain messages of hope, they are often lost within a flurry of sex or violence. Super heroes today defeat the bad guy (if you can tell good guys from bad guys) by total annihilation. The news is full of people who want not justice, but retribution. In our churches children are told that the end of the world is near, often Pastors talk about these days as “end days”. Statistics are reported daily that tell inner-city children in the USA they have little hope of living past the age of twenty. When we look at this world, is it any wonder that our children seem to have very little hope?