What is a refugee? #WorldRefugeeDay
Refugee: (noun) A person who has been forced to leave their country in order to escape war, persecution, or natural disaster.
But if you ask any Australian, many will have a different take on what a refugee is and why they are here. Some definitions will be kind, others not.
So what’s the man-in-the-street truth? What does a refugee look like? Talk like? How do they feel about living here? What makes them tick?
The truth is, like us, refugees are all very different; they are diverse individuals trying their best to make their way in a new country.
But they share a common thread, a collective scar, a wounding of the heart; the tearing of soul-flesh that happens when one is ripped from home, torn from the birth-land, the place of one’s beginnings. Uprooted from all that is familiar – landscapes, smells, tastes, neighbors, family.
Refugees have known terror and great loss. They have faced the choice of staying in a hell of violence and fear, or safety – farewell to everything that ever meant home, people and places they will probably never see again in this lifetime. An unimaginable choice.
Australia is a good land. Refugees are safe here. Blessedly safe. Our land is a shelter for the persecuted. But Australians are scared of losing their grip on the good life; they fear taking in those that come from oppressed lands – lest the oppression come home to roost among us.
Refugees are strangers living in a strange land, walking unfamiliar paths, awash in the stigma of un-belonging. Mostly, they are unprepared for the suspicion that waits for them here.
Faltering in the wake of distrust and anti-refugee sentiment, the newcomers take small steps towards us and our way of life.
But there is also love, moments where refugee and the non-refugee connect, move past their differences, touch hands and hearts, share meals – and remember they both belong to the human family.
Kindness crosses great chasms of cultural difference. It can mend broken hearts, engender the strength needed to walk a fresh path, and lend confidence and faith to a new life. It can also open suspicious minds, invite new possibilities, and unearth the richness of diversity. And then both, the refugee and Australian-born, are blessed and healed.
It may feel like a stretch, a definite leap outside the comfort zone, but the gifts can be extraordinary.
Here is one such intersection of lives … read the experiences of a Toowoomba resident, Barbara Bluett.
Barbara with a mother and daughter she befriended in Iraq, who now live in Australia after gaining humanitarian VISAS.
So, how do we break through our own fears and prejudices, our feelings of inadequacy, of not knowing how to help or where to start?
A smile and a friendly greeting can be a great place to begin. At YouBelong, we champion community integration for refugees in Australia through Welcome Picnics and the GROW Trauma Recovery Program. If you have any questions about our programs, fundraising, partnerships, or just want to get in touch with us, then we want to hear from you.
Words: Tracey Heers
