Refugee horrors cry out for humanity and leadership | Letters

It is not easy to look in the mirror and value your reflection if you are not absolutely horrified by the images of a dead, innocent Syrian boy face down on a beach (The shocking cruel reality of Europe's refugee crisis, 3 September). That boy was someone's son, someone's grandson - he was one of us. To state that we should all be ashamed to bear witness is an understatement. To state that we have every right to expect our leaders to stand up and lead, to show leadership, statesmanship even, is almost trite now. The image crystallises the time we live in. Rather a dead child than the humanity and leadership required to afford people, just like us, a home. Today, I am ashamed to be British.
Thomas Bennett
Birmingham

" I was shocked and dismayed to see the images of a dead refugee child published on your website today. John Berger wrote about the depoliticising effect of publishing graphic images of war and violence, arguing that they had two effects: either to heighten the reader's sense of impotence and futility in the face of unimaginable tragedy; or to prompt an act of individual penance, such as donating to a charity. "The picture becomes evidence of the general human condition. It accuses everybody and nobody."