The Guardian’s £1m for refugees can also change government policy

A helper puts a jacket at a refugee boy at the ‘Bayernkaserne’, where clothes for migrants have been collected, in Munich. The Guardian charity appeal for refugees has now topped £1m. Photograph: Christof Stache/AFP/Getty Images

Congratulations on passing the £1m mark in your fundraising campaign for refugees (The Guardian charity appeal, 15 December). Time and again, public funding appeals have raised sizable amounts and forced changes in policy when British governments refused to accept refugees. In 1956 the government grudgingly proposed accepting 2,000 Hungarian refugees out of 200,000 who fled that country. After a great outcry, it admitted 20,000 Hungarians and provided £355,000 for their resettlement. An appeal by the lord mayor of London raised more than £2.5m in a few weeks and local charities cared for the new arrivals. Thanks to the Guardian, other fundraisers and generous British people, this could happen again for Syrian and other refugees in the UK.
Linda Rabben
Takoma Park, Maryland, USA

• Join the debate – email guardian.letters@theguardian.com