When life is normal, we stress about the small things. When life is normal, we have family and friends around us to help with the bigger things.
But what happens when life isn’t normal? What happens if you don’t have the local knowledge and you live in fear of getting it wrong?
“There are so many things that can go wrong with asylum seekers and Black people. People and systems may not want to be racist, but they are,” says David* from Liberia.
“So if we do one thing wrong, assumptions and conclusions can be made, that we have done something wrong. I had an issue with my labour card. The wrong ID was submitted. I was nervous that it may appear as though I was committing an offence.”
When David told staff at the Nicosia Dignity Centre in Cyprus, staff were able to rectify the issue with the authorities and show that the mistake was genuine.
We supplied that essential local knowledge because we were aware of the challenges asylum seekers face and we know how the system works. “You support us with these things in mind,” says David.
*To protect the privacy of our members, names are changed and the image used is for representational purposes only.
