Showing posts with label voice. Show all posts
We all need to be diligent advocates
Subscribe to JRS-UK Community Blog by Email
Louise Zanré, Director of JRS UK, shares her vision for a better world and invites us to join advocacy efforts alongside refugees to make the case for their dignity
Advocacy is one of the three parts of the JRS mission. We often spend a lot more time on accompaniment and service - I suspect because many of us attracted to working for JRS are what I think of as being at heart "people persons". We derive energy and inspiration from being present both with and two the people we accompany. We build relationships and endeavour to offer and to receive hope, dignity and justice through those relationships. And we often do not make enough of the advocacy opportunities we have had and the fact that peoples' lives are changed as a result.
Being a "people person" myself I get a great deal of pleasure from meeting new people and having the opportunity of explaining to them a little about the reality of the lives of the people we accompany, whether those left destitute by the asylum system in the UK or those who have been detained, and the work of JRS. As a person of faith and conviction I base much of that message I share on the values underpinning the mission of JRS. I dream of a new world of dignity and justice, where everyone is treated with equality and compassion. I hope that, when I speak to groups, or at events; when I have meetings with civil servants, politicians; when I attend network meetings of partner organisations; when I write articles, that I am able to speak with truth, compassion and with passion and that the people I address or meet with are better equipped to conceive of and to want to work towards that new world.
It is a big ask - of myself and of those listening - and I am sure that I am not always as effective as I might be. It is also a big ask as we are up against so much. There are too many myths about refugees and asylum seekers. The world is far from perfect and sometimes the issues we are confronted with can seem to be insurmountable. It is difficult to know what response to make to the fact that so many people are being forced to risk dangerous journeys to get to Europe; to the fears that so many people have over competition for resources, jobs, housing or health care provision.
However it is especially at this time when things can seem to be so dark and depressing that it is of particular importance that we do try our best to counter a prevailing message of blame, of not being able to be generous, of not being able to participate together in society.
A new immigration bill was announced recently in the Queen's speech. Unsurprisingly, the highlights make for pretty depressing reading - landlords having to check immigration status of prospective tenants to determine if they can legally rent housing to them, appeal rights only being permissible in immigration cases after deportation, making it more difficult for immigrants to get bank accounts, making money earned from illegal working the proceeds of criminal activity and therefore able to be confiscated, to name a very few. On top of existing restrictions they make the UK a very unwelcoming place indeed.
In the face of this we all need to be diligent advocates. We will be sharing with you campaigns against particular measures - whether to stop indefinite detention; to try and convince our government to resettle more refugees; or to lobby MPs about the immigration bill. But we will also be asking you to listen to the experiences of our refugee friends, their hopes and dreams. And we will be asking you to work with us to dream a new world, to try to be more welcoming ourselves in everything we do or say, to challenge injustice and to pray and reflect. Without our refugee friends and without you, nothing I nor JRS can do will substantially change things.
How Do We Approach Advocacy at JRS?
 |
|
'Helping Hands' by Alec
Peever (2011)
photo by Snapshooter46 from Foter.com
|
Advocacy is part of JRS’ threefold mission, along with accompaniment and service. Here is a short reflection that shares some of the important characteristics of “Ignatian” advocacy, that staff member Kate has found helpful as presented by Jesuit Frank Turner SJ.
In the same way that we treat each refugee who comes to JRS with dignity and respect, our advocacy work is shaped by values that are the foundation for our whole mission. When engaging policy or decision-makers, we try to start with an attitude that assumes acceptance of the other person, even if we do not accept their position, so our dialogue retains the relationship whilst raising specific concerns. It is too easy to reject or be dismissive of someone else who is working in government or a public service.
In a similar way, a Jesuit approach to advocacy looks at both rescue of individuals who are suffering and the structure of injustice within society as a whole, thereby seeking a common good. We are not lobbying for our own interests, and want to show that a solution, e.g. for us as the host community is not possible without dignity for all. And when speaking about the perspective of those who might be “oppressed” or “excluded”, we do not label or objectify and where possible we always promote refugees themselves to speak. If it is only safe for us do so, we speak out only where we are connected through our service, so our advocacy is action based, not in the form of intellectual positions.
We hope that our dialogue with decision-makers and fellow campaigners comes with an openness - almost a spiritual attitude - that recognises that truth and goodness come from unexpected places. To do this, we try to create spaces for encounter and mutual meeting, rooted in community, honesty and information sharing. This comes with wisdom and clarity of message. So, at JRS, we try to ensure that our advocacy is both prophetic and pragmatic, holding up principles and seeking practical improvements in lives of those we are working on behalf, moving towards right relationship and reconciliation for refugees and all of us.
Subscribe to JRS-UK Community Blog by Email
CSAN Lent Campaign: Changes Lives
CSAN, or Caritas Social Action Network, in which we are taking part, has launched the Lent Campaign: Changes Lives! Here are some of our JRS volunteers voices on how JRS helps change lives of those marginalised ...
Thank you, all! If you are interested, here is the link to CSAN.
Subscribe to JRS-UK Community Blog by Email
 | ||||||
| By encouraging refugee women to manage their stress and to focus on their health and wellbeing; by praying together |
 |
| By enabling people to develop their own voice |
 |
| By providing companionship and emotional support |
 |
| Through sharing, listening and praying with and for people who have been detained, in a non-judgemental way |
 |
| By teaching us how we can help make a difference |
 |
| By treating people with dignity; encouraging people to participate; and by giving people a voice |
 |
| Accompaniment; journeying with; listening; building relationships; learning mutually |
 |
| By finding creative opportunities for our refugee friends to have peace, dignity and to have some fun |
 |
| By respecting each person as they are, without any discrimination! |
Thank you, all! If you are interested, here is the link to CSAN.
Subscribe to JRS-UK Community Blog by Email
Tag :
accompany,
advocate,
asylum seekers,
befriending,
day centre,
expression,
human beings,
JRS,
refugees,
voice,
volunteers,
Advent Together
Kate and Rosemary both took part in Pax Christi’s annual Advent Service at St Aloysius church near Euston in London this week. Kate shares what she enjoyed about the occasion.
Jesuit Refugee Service UK was invited to offer a testimony and focus for prayer for a gathering of people who work for justice all the way through the year. We were together to listen to stories, reflect on scripture and sing. The event was both intercession for people who all year round struggle in impossible circumstances and a festive celebration at the same time.
This service was particularly important to me. It was beautifully designed and presented with a lot of thought and love - whether through the choir, Westminster Deaf Service interpreters or the different creative stations for prayer. It is not often that I feel my worship truly reflects my work and commitment to working for peace. So I am grateful that on occasion we were able to honour refugees, those caught up in the troubles in the Holy Land, women who suffer from violence and those who seek to transform conflict throughout the world.
Each theme had a scripture verse, a personal story, a prayer from Pope Francis or a litany and a song. During the service we were all invited to make a pilgrimage around the church to each area, by way of accompanying people throughout the world who find themselves in situations of flight, discrimination, trafficking or isolation. We sang in English, Arabic and Hebrew and made a commitment to instil in our hearts the courage to take concrete steps to achieve peace. It meant a lot to me to share those words with a mix of people who I know do that in their daily lives.
After the service, we all went downstairs to share a mince pie and glass of wine. JRS had a stall with crafts made by refugees in Kenya (www.jrsea.org/mikono) and sold more than £100 of products. Thank you to everyone who bought something from us.
Read more about Pax Christi’s work: www. paxchristi.org.uk
Read more about JRS’ work in Syria: http://en.jrs.net/campaigns_
The collection was taken for Pax Christi and JRS Syria. You can donate here: https://en.jrs.net/donate
Tag :
accompany,
advocate,
bound together,
Britain,
Christmas,
crafts,
crossing bridges,
friends,
human beings,
london,
peace,
pope francis,
prayer,
reflection,
refugee,
sharing,
visit,
voice,
Three Types of Listening
 |
|
Photo by Steven Shorrock, from Flickr.com
|
Jesuit Refugee
Service UK is based at the Hurtado Jesuit Centre in East London. The Centre has
just completed a “listening exercise” in
the local neighbourhood. Kate, who works with JRS and at the Centre reflects on
the importance of listening when we are building relationships with other
members of our community.
What does listening
mean to you? What does the dictionary tell us it might mean? Here are three
meanings I found: “to give one’s attention to a sound” i.e. to be attentive, to
give ear to, to concentrate. Another
meaning: “to take notice and act on what someone says” i.e. follow what they
say, bear it in mind, take it into consideration, an active response to a request or some advice shared. And finally:
“make an effort to hear something, be alert and ready to hear” i.e. a sense of
listening out for something that might be missed, trying to catch something at
a deeper level or from a place
beyond where we already are.
Over the last six
months, at the Hurtado Jesuit Centre, we have set time aside to build
relationships with our neighbours and community partners in Wapping and across Tower
Hamlets. This meant us concentrating our attention on those around us, being
curious about their work, caring enough to find out what their needs are and
enjoy getting to know them. Sometimes it meant easy connections, otherwise it
was about popping by, building trust and creating space to listen.
Now we are at the
stage of reflecting on what we have heard: it is about taking notice of what
people were generous enough to share with us. Now we have gained the privilege
of being welcomed into other people’s projects and priorities, we need to
follow up on what they have said, to consider it carefully and explore with them
how we can act on what they have said matters to them. This is less about us
reaching out to offer something to others, but a process of getting to know
another and developing something jointly.
And as we search for
a sense of what is beyond where we are now, in terms of our programme, we hope
that we will be alert to the unexpected, open to fresh wisdom and willing to
respond to surprises. Community engagement is never boring, but hopefully we might
avoid being so busy that our imaginations get tired or that we get pressured
into taking the easy option. So we trust that as our Centre grows in maturity,
we continue to have time to welcome people each week, be responsive to real problems
and get involved in creative, challenging activities.
I wonder if these three types of
listening are ones that we can all bear in mind as we go about our busy
community work in our neighbourhood and local borough? To listen to one another
with respect as we share different perspectives and learn something new. To
listen with a view to putting what we have learnt into action, to really make a
difference in practical ways. And to listen out for that deeper wisdom or clues
for future community needs, changing trends and creative opportunities to work
together over the months ahead.
Read the
report of our findings “Welcome to Wapping: The Value of Community in a Tower
Hamlets Village” . One of the themes emerging from the report is Migration and
Immigration which will be developed with JRS-UK.
Subscribe to JRS-UK Community Blog by Email
Tag :
accompany,
bound together,
Britain,
centre,
community,
human beings,
Jesuits and Friends,
JRS,
listen,
london,
open doors,
reflection,
voice,
wapping,
