+
Sign up for
The Upworthiest
Our top stories of the day delivered straight to your inbox.
upworthy
More

Refugees trolled Trump using his childhood home, and it’s pretty glorious.

In a bit of brilliant, mild-mannered trolling, a group of refugees recently rented out Trump's childhood home.

To make a point about who exactly gets to call this country home, a small group of refugees recently took the opportunity to invite themselves into the house the president grew up in.

President Trump's childhood home, which is currently available to rent. Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images.

As the United Nation's General Assembly convenes in Manhattan, Oxfam America released a video of refugees from Syria, Vietnam, and Somalia gathering in the president's old stomping grounds, just a few miles away in Queens.

Their bold, symbolic message was clear: Yes, refugees are welcome here.

GIF via Oxfam America/YouTube.

The group toured the house and opened up about their own experiences growing up.

Sipping coffee in the family room and resting on the beds, refugees like Eiman, who arrived from Somalia and has been resettled in North Carolina, shared why they're certainly deserving of the American dream.

GIF via Oxfam America/YouTube.

"To me, the American dream is having a safe and stable home and being able to accomplish your goals and have those opportunities," Eiman explained. "And now it's starting to feel threatened."

GIF via Oxfam America/YouTube.

"I am like every other person who has come here," said Ghassan, a refugee from Syria now resettled in Maryland. "I direct a message to the leaders of the world: Help all the countries facing conflict. Help them establish stability."

Advocates at Oxfam America, the group that rented out Trump's old home, say we're at a critical moment.

"It has never been more important for Americans to use their voice to let their government know that refugees are welcome here," the group's website reads, noting the president, Congress, and Supreme Court will all be making critical decisions affecting refugees in the weeks and months ahead.

As the organization pointed out, 2017 is on track to be the deadliest year yet for those desperately fleeing their war-torn homelands — most notably, Syria — in search of safety. Thousands of lives have been lost crossing the Mediterranean Sea in hopes of finding refuge in Europe.

Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images.

Critics say world leaders aren't doing nearly enough to ease the crisis. In the U.S., an executive order by Trump has limited refugee intake to just 50,000 people; in contrast, the Obama administration had hoped to increase that figure from 85,000 to 110,000 this fiscal year. Trump's order has contributed to a historic decline in refugee resettlement in nearly every U.S. state.

"A cornerstone of the founding values of the U.S. was to offer oppressed people refuge from violence and persecution," Oxfam America noted. "Now as Americans we must open our minds, hearts, and communities to vulnerable refugees who are seeking a safe place to call home."

Watch refugees take over Trump's childhood home below:

Oxfam America is encouraging supporters to sign its petition in support of refugees and to contact their representatives to make sure their voice is heard.

Community

Facebook group brings people together IRL to make meaningful friendships

True

Making new friends as an adult is challenging. While people crave meaningful IRL connections, it can be hard to know where to find them. But thanks to one Facebook Group, meeting your new best friends is easier than ever.

Founded in 2018, NYC Brunch Squad brings together hundreds of people who come as strangers and leave as friends through its in-person events.

“Witnessing the transformative impact our community has on the lives of our members is truly remarkable. We provide the essential support and connections needed to thrive amid the city's chaos,” shares Liza Rubin, the group’s founder.

Despite its name, the group doesn’t just do brunch. They also have book clubs, seasonal parties, and picnics, among other activities.

NYC Brunch Squad curates up to 10 monthly events tailored to the specific interests of its members. Liza handles all the details, taking into account different budgets and event sizes – all people have to do is show up.

“We have members who met at our events and became friends and went on to embark on international journeys to celebrate birthdays together. We have had members get married with bridesmaids by their sides who were women they first connected with at our events. We’ve had members decide to live together and become roommates,” Liza says.

Members also bond over their passion for giving back to their community. The group has hosted many impact-driven events, including a “Picnic with Purpose” to create self-care packages for homeless shelters and recently participated in the #SquadSpreadsJoy challenge. Each day, the 100 members participating receive random acts of kindness to complete. They can also share their stories on the group page to earn extra points. The member with the most points at the end wins a free seat at the group's Friendsgiving event.

Keep ReadingShow less
friendship
Education

3,700-year-old Babylonian stone tablet gets translated, changes history

They were doing trigonometry 1500 years before the Greeks.

via UNSW

Dr. Daniel Mansfield and his team at the University of New South Wales in Australia have just made an incredible discovery. While studying a 3,700-year-old tablet from the ancient civilization of Babylon, they found evidence that the Babylonians were doing something astounding: trigonometry!

Most historians have credited the Greeks with creating the study of triangles' sides and angles, but this tablet presents indisputable evidence that the Babylonians were using the technique 1,500 years before the Greeks ever were.

Keep ReadingShow less
education
Family

Mom’s blistering rant on how men are responsible for all unwanted pregnancies is on the nose

“ALL unwanted pregnancies are caused by the irresponsible ejaculations of men. Period. Don't believe me? Let me walk you through it."

Gabrielle Blair/Twitter

Mom has something to say... strongly say.

Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, commonly known as Mormons, are a conservative group who aren't known for being vocal about sex.

But best selling author, blogger, and mother of six, Gabrielle Blair, has kicked that stereotype to the curb with a pointed thread on reducing unwanted pregnancies. And her sights are set directly at men.

Keep ReadingShow less
women
Family

Dad takes 7-week paternity leave after his second child is born and is stunned by the results

"These past seven weeks really opened up my eyes on how the household has actually ran, and 110% of that is because of my wife."

@ustheremingtons/TikTok

There's a lot to be gleaned from this.

Participating in paternity leave offers fathers so much more than an opportunity to bond with their new kids. It also allows them to help around the house and take on domestic responsibilities that many new mothers have to face alone…while also tending to a newborn.

All in all, it enables couples to handle the daunting new chapter as a team, making it less stressful on both parties. Or at least equally stressful on both parties. Democracy!

TikTok creator and dad Caleb Remington, from the popular account @ustheremingtons, confesses that for baby number one, he wasn’t able to take a “single day of paternity leave.”

This time around, for baby number two, Remington had the privilege of taking seven weeks off (to be clear—his employer offered four weeks, and he used an additional three weeks of PTO).

The time off changed Remington’s entire outlook on parenting, and his insights are something all parents could probably use.

Keep ReadingShow less
parenting
Science

She tattooed half her face and you'd never know it. Her skills are just that good.

This incredible medical tattoo technology is giving renewed hope to burn victims.

All images via the CBS/YouTube

Basma Hameed runs a tattoo shop, of sorts...


Meet Samira Omar.

The 17-year-old was the victim of a horrific bullying incident.

Keep ReadingShow less
Education

8 changes that were made to a classic Richard Scarry book to keep up with the times. Progress!

All the misogyny and racism you may not have noticed are now gone.

Images via Alan Taylor/Flickr, used with permission.

Updating the kitchen.


Remember those beloved Richard Scarry books?

Books from when you were a kid?

Keep ReadingShow less
Education

Voice recordings of people who were enslaved offer incredible first-person accounts of U.S. history

"The results of these digitally enhanced recordings are arresting, almost unbelievable. The idea of hearing the voices of actual slaves from the plantations of the Old South is as powerful—as startling, really—as if you could hear Abraham Lincoln or Robert E. Lee speak." - Ted Koppel

Library of Congress

When we think about the era of American slavery, many of us tend to think of it as the far distant past. While slavery doesn't exist as a formal institution today, there are people living who knew formerly enslaved black Americans first-hand. In the wide arc of history, the legal enslavement of people on U.S. soil is a recent occurrence—so recent, in fact, that we have voice recordings of interviews with people who lived it.

Keep ReadingShow less
history
Trending Stories