Asylum seekers and refugees - voices
There is no substitute for hearing from the people in the excluded groups themselves. This Voices section contains links to publications and other media, such as videos, that try to capture the lived experience of their situation.
These resources were last accessed on 3 April 2013.
BBC: Born survivors - Yasmin
This story is made available on the BBC website based on the 'Born survivors' documentary series shown on BBC three. Yasmin was three when her father was killed. In 2002 she and her brother and sisters fled civil war-torn Somalia for the U.K. Now she and her sister Shaima take a trip back to some of the places where they were housed when they first arrived, and explains why she's had to redefine what "home" means to her.
Disability Now: Asylum seekers' unheard voices
Disabled asylum seekers have used art to express themselves through a painted mural in Bristol. Two of them talk about their lives and their treatment in Britain
Refugee Action (2008) Refugee Awareness Project (RAP): Refugee voices
From the Refugee Action website: "Refugee speakers are at the heart of our sessions but if you don't have someone presenting with you but still want to talk people through some real-life examples...The first-hand accounts that you'll find here are from real people that Refugee Action has worked with. Names might sometimes be changed but the accounts are truthful. Every single one of them makes essential reading - distressing sometimes, yes, but nevertheless enlightening and hugely important".
Safe at last? Children on the front line of UK border control
This report originally published by Refugee and Migrant Justice in 2010 highlights some of the experiences that unaccompanied asylum seeking children have had on arriving in the UK. “They arrive exhausted, traumatised, hungry and often sick or injured. Many have not slept or eaten properly for days. When they arrive, the children believe they are safe at last. Their treatment by the UK Border Agency undermines that belief”. The report tells the stories of some of these children in their own words. The report is made available on the Save the Children website.
Scottish Refugee Council: Real lives
The stories of some of the people who are forced to flee their own country and seek safety in Scotland.
Social Care Institute for Excellence Social Care TV: Seldom heard groups: Refugee and asylum seekers
Social Care TV is an online channel for everyone involved in the social care sector, both staff and users. This video in the 'Seldom heard groups' series is about Azeldin a former asylum seeker who fled to this country from Libya with his wife and family. He talks about his experiences as an asylum seeker and the difficulties he faced in connecting with services required. The video explains how Azeldin is using his experiences to help others in the same position as a volunteer with the Manchester Refugee Support Network and in other groups he has joined or initiated. Each story in the series points to related information and resources.
Transient Film Exchange (2003). A long way to Piccadilly
A young female asylum seeker from Burundi reflects on what it means to have to start life all over again in the UK having fled her war torn country.