TOW #1 - Who's Responsible for the Refugees?

The article is from The New York Times and is written by former advisor to the British prime minister and Crowdpac co-founder, Steve Hilton.  Crowdpac is an organization that makes politics easier for citizens from all over the world to access and understand.  The op-ed piece was written to inform and persuade readers that America needs to take responsibility for the current refugee crisis, as well as put into action a better, and more permanent, plan.  The essay was written for American politicians as well as, on a wider scale, all Americans, to whom Hilton refers to as "we" and "you".  From the beginning, Hilton makes use of ethos, pathos and logos.  He writes, "As the son of immigrants welcomed into Britain from Communist Hungary, I feel a strong moral instinct to extend a similar welcome to others fleeing their homelands in even worse circumstances."  Not only does his personal experience extend his credibility, it allows the reader to feel the same emotions Hilton does towards the topic.  Hilton also uses questions directed at the reader such as, "How would you feel if your daily life was being made intolerable while the authorities, thanks to European Union rules about registering refugees, seemed unable to restore order?"  In addition to questions, Hilton also makes use of humor by using phrases like, "Yes, America, I'm talking to you" and "So it's a bit rich..."  Hilton uses his essay to "call out" the United States by saying that we don't take nearly enough credit when it comes to our place in this refugee crisis.  He uses examples such as our reluctance to get involved in Syria before the situation got worse, and how we haven't pledged to take in the amount of refugees we need to.  To support his point, Hilton makes use of logos and quotes Oxford economist Paul Collier, as well as economist Hernando de Soto from the United States Agency for International Development.  By supporting his claims with trustworthy sources, the reader is even more inclined to listen to Hilton's message.  In the end, Hilton makes a call to action.  He writes, "Today's crisis will worsen in the years ahead unless we deal with the causes, not just the symptoms."  Later when referring to countries with informal economies Hilton writes, "We should put pressure on their rulers to implement the necessary legal reforms by cutting aid payments until they do it."  These call to actions tie together everything Hilton has discussed in his essay, and make his message extremely successful.  The reader feels empathy towards Hilton, trusts his credibility, and understands his message through the rhetorical devices used.