Answer for Anne

Inside her bedroom, a small town girl named Anne sits at a desk gazing at a souvenir photograph of the Statue of Liberty. As she contemplates the inscription, "Give me your tired, your poor,/Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,/The wretched refuse of your teeming shore,/Send these, the nameless, tempest-tost to me,/I lift my lamp beside the golden door!" Anne recalls the lesson she learned earlier that day in her civics class about "DPs," displaced persons who, because of the war, have lost their homes in Europe: The teacher tells the class that hundreds of thousands of DPs are currently living in former concentration camps in Germany. When the teacher calls on a student named Walker, he describes new legislation that would allow for the entry of 215,000 refugees, with priority being given to skilled workers. For that evening's homework, the teacher assigns an essay on the topic, "Why Our Town Should Take in Displaced Persons." After school, Anne, whose father is the editor of the local newspaper, sneaks into his office and raids his files for information about DPs. When Anne asks for help in writing the essay, her father advises her to take a poll of the local business owners to gauge their opinions. The town's cobbler tells Anne he is worried about housing and jobs for the DPs, while her classmate Wallie, who works at the drugstore, says he already knows what he will write for his essay. Wallie, facing graduation at the end of the term, says he does not want to have to compete against "foreigners" for a job. When she asks Ed, a policeman, for his opinion, he refers her to the mayor, who also expresses anxiety over housing and jobs. Anne reaches the conclusion that everyone in her town is selfish and goes to the local Lutheran church to seek solace. There she tells a kindly pastor her feelings, after which he explains that he has just been sent a short documentary film showing the plight of the DPs. Just before the pastor turns off the light switch, Anne's father sneaks into the room and watches from the back row. The film depicts the story of a man and his two starving children, who are taken in by an official of the Lutheran Church. The official delivers them to a converted concentration camp in Nuremberg, where they receive food and clothing. They are given a place to sleep, and as soon as the man is strong enough, he is assigned work around the camp. Given lessons in English and the Scriptures, the refugees pray that God will let them come to America. Sadly, the man is told that America is accepting only childless single men. When the film ends, Anne sees her father, who tells her that he is writing an editorial about DPs for the newspaper. The pastor then tells Anne that if people would only follow Christ's example, they would not behave so selfishly. Back in her room, Anne looks again at the Statue of Liberty, prays silently for a moment, then begins her essay.