Refugee Tales 2020 is taking place online from 3 to 5 July. Evening events over 3 days have hosts such as Patrick Gale and Raymond Antrobus, with jazz, classical and folk music. There are new tales of the detention experience by writers including Robert Macfarlane and Christy Lefteri and tales by those with lived experience of detention. See the programme on their website www.refugeetales.org
This year, instead of a large scale public walk, supporters of people who are in immigration detention will be walking again – but alone, or in a small socially distanced group. They will be listening to the breakfast reading from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and then setting off to walk in their respective localities. There will be break from the walks throughout the day to listen to talks, readings, to watch a film and hear new tales, accessing these through the Home Page of the website. Refugee Tales really welcome anyone who might want to walk too, or to watch an event or two. Walkers are being asked to take photos of bridges and to share them with the hashtag RT20 and to send them to [email protected] for walk collages to be made. There will also be a map on the website Home Page for walkers to show where in the world they are walking.
Refugee Tales supporters will all be walking in solidarity with those who have experienced detention and calling for a world without detention. Talks on the theme of ‘Calling for a Future Without Detention’ will be given by Refugee Tales Patron, Ali Smith, by Kamila Shamsie, by Freed Voices, by people with lived experience of detention.
The UK is the only country in Europe that detains people indefinitely for immigration purposes, and Refugee Tales 2020 calls for a future without detention. Refugee Tales is rooted in the work of Gatwick Detainees Welfare Group that supports people in detention and, during covid-19, is also responding to the need of those released who are destitute and homeless. Please consider donating to GDWG to enable them to continue their important work, or show solidarity by walking between 3 and 5 July and watch the talks, readings, music, tales and more online. Join us in walking, join our online events – in the words of Ali Smith, ‘for the better imagined’.
City of Sanctuary are members of the Detention Forum and supporters of Refugee Tales. We hope that volunteers across the network will engage with and promote these events.
Book to join the events:
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