It’s been a very frightening evening and a sombre morning. We are all worried for our friends around the world who are at risk. Last night we saw the attacks in Paris in Beirut, but we also know that this kind of violence is sometimes a daily reality in countries around the world not so fortunate to even merit coverage by the mainstream media. That’s not meant to diminish the horror of what happened yesterday, but to acknowledge that we have friends everywhere who are at risk, and who may need our help.

As news of the Paris attacks was breaking, CC was publishing a post to bring attention to new rumours that our friend Bassel may have been sentenced to death in Syria, and to invite him to become a CC fellow — which only highlights for me that the world is a dangerous place, even for those who only wish to do good things.

Last night, as Parisians fled the attacks, the hashtag #PorteOuverte was being used for those who didn’t feel safe to go home. Strangers took each other in. Even in the face of evil and fear, people helped. The desire to take care of each other is so much more powerful than the urge to harm.

To all of you, take care of each other. My hope is that we will respond to hatred with love, and combat fear with openness.

Ryan Merkley
CEO, Creative Commons