Myanmar's Rohingya Muslims, a stateless, religious minority, have been denied basic rights like healthcare, education, and legal recognition for decades. In the past several years tensions have risen in Myanmar's Rakhine State as Rohingya villages are raided and destroyed, their inhabitants raped, tortured, murdered and forced to flee. NGOs have been forced to leave Rakhine State, cutting off essential aid from those who need it. Myanmar's de facto leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, once a beacon of hope for a country shedding the chains of dictatorship, has remained silent and continually side steps the issue of Rohingya persecution.

With nowhere else to go, an estimated 300,000 to 500,000 Rohingyas have fled over the border to Bangladesh where they are not welcome. Fearful of retribution, only 32,000 refugees have registered with UNHCR. The Bangladeshi government is attempting to banish refugees to an uninhabited island - which is completely covered during high tide - in the Bay of Bengal.

The U.S. Senate should pass a resolution (similar to H.R. 418) urging Aung San Suu Kyi to end persecution against the Rohingya. Furthermore, they should urge her to recognize the Rohingya as citizens of Myanmar. Congress should designate funds to aid and assist Bangladesh in effectively resettling refugees. Furthermore, Congress should urge the U.S. State Department and the White House to increase the number of refugees allowed in the United States and grant asylum to vetted and deserving Rohingya families.

We in the United States enjoy basic access to education, healthcare, food, clean water, and legal recognition as human beings. It is our prerogative to use our wealth and might to reach out and help others who don't have those same rights. Just as we would clothe and feed a member of our own family who had been chased out of house and home, we should assist other citizens of the world experiencing the same.