Bloggers Unite: Refugees

I recently came across this awesome website called Bloggers Unite. Bloggers Unite is an attempt to harness the power of the blogosphere to make the world a better place. By asking bloggers to write about a particular subject on 1 day of the month, a single voice can be joined with thousands to help make a difference; from raising awareness for cancer, to an effort to better education systems or supporting 3rd world countries. HOW COOL IS THAT?! I love the idea. This is my first time participating, and today (November 10th) THOUSANDS of bloggers will be writing about refugees. This is especially interesting to me as I have recently started volunteering with Micah House and have been learning a lot about refugees lately.

This month they are supporting Refugees United. Refugees United is a non-profit organization that helps refugees relocate family and friends through the use of the internet. Refugees United provides refugees with an anonymous forum to reconnect with missing family. By registering with nick- names, scars, former locations and other markers only identifiable to family and close friends, everyone can remain 'invisible' to all but relatives. All refugees are welcome, regardless of conflict, place or time. Refugees United is an independent, non-political, non-religious NGO. No third party is involved. No official papers need to be filled in. The service is free of charge, easy and safe.


On Thursday night I went to an event that Micah House was holding. We went to a really cool fair trade coffee shop and watched a documentary called God Grew Tired of Us. It is AMAZING- it had me both laughing and crying. I think everyone should watch it. "After raising themselves in the desert along with thousands of other parentless "lost boys," Sudanese refugees John, Daniel and Panther have found their way to America, where they experience electricity, running water and supermarkets for the first time. Capturing their wonder at things Westerners take for granted, this documentary, an award winner at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival, paints an intimate portrait of strangers in a strange land." It is really amazing, and funny... go watch it!


While I was at the event, they passed around pieces of paper for us to learn more about refugees. A few things I learnd... 409,526 refugees came to Canada between 1979 and 2001. There were 10 million refugees in the world in 2002.

And I also heard Shirin's story... Shirin was recognized as a refugee from Afghanistan in April 1998. She applied for permanent residence and included her husband and 5 children on her application. At the time her oldest was 10 and her youngest was 2. Over the next 5 years she received very little communication from CIC. Finally in May 2003 Shirin was informed that her file was delayed because her husband was inadmissable. CIC suggested that is she removed her husband from the application she would soon be reuinted with her children. In July 2003 she removed her husband from the application realizing that she would likely never see him again. In September 2003 CIC called into question whether Shirin was in fact the mother of the 5 children and asked for DNA testing. Shirin complied and testing was completed in February 2004, at a cost of $1800. Six months later she was still waiting to be reuinted with her children. It is six and a half years since she applied for reunification.