This year, the refugee crisis has dominated news outlets. We have seen millions of displaced people suffering through harsh conditions, dying on sea shores, and struggling to find a place to call home away from the violence they had escaped.

Tom Fletcher, former British Ambassador to Lebanon, tweeted something last month at the Esquire Man At His Best Awards that inspired my article. Mr. Fletcher tweeted: “Start thinking about refugees as heroes not victims.”

Refugees nowadays need to be inspired and empowered, so that their life is not consumed by the fear they are subjected to. The journey of Chaker Khazaal comes as a strong tale to serve this purpose.

Khazaal, a former refugee born in a Palestinian camp in Lebanon, now Canadian author and journalist, won the Esquire Man of the Year 2015 Award at Dubai’s Madinat Arena on November 6, 2015. Khazaal’s Confessions of a War Child trilogy and Huffington Post articles have contributed to raise awareness about the refugee crisis, while inspiring those displaced with his own journey out of a refugee camp in Beirut, Lebanon.

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