Firstly, obviously I know you as my little brother, the boy who wore a green bobble hat for weeks and insisted on being called Mike (from the Monkees) but for the benefit of anybody who doesn't know you, can you tell me a bit about yourself, particularly what you do for a living?
Having moved on from the greatest rock and roll band in the world... I trained as a youth worker and have worked face to face with children and young people for over 20 years, whilst working with young people I was drawn to youth homelessness and have also co-led large groups of volunteers to run cold weather shelters for homeless adults in London. I then went on to manage several homes in London that offer accommodation and high quality support for homeless young people and those who are leaving care. I now work in development and spend most of my time talking with local authorities across the UK and how the charity that I work for can help. I have a keen interest in working with young refugees in this country and am currently working on a project to offer them homes and support.
I've seen lots of posts on Facebook about volunteers taking donations to refugee camps in Calais and beyond but you have different plans don't you?
Yes, while I think it's hugely important that the right kind of donations are still being offered (please check with your local group before donating goods, there is no refuse collection in the camps), my plan is slightly different, I aim to spend some time trying to identify children and young people who are in the camps alone, without their parents. I want to help them move to safer, smaller and more appropriate camps where their needs can be met.
Why single out young people when people of all ages are suffering?
The reality is that there is little infrastructure and a lot of chaos in the camps, with new arrivals daily and the threat of traffickers and exploitation the heightened risk to this specific group is worthy of attention. I have little understanding of the scale of the problem and part of my visit will be to plan for a more sustainable project later on. I have been inspired by a guy called John who I linked with some other friends who are in Calais. John used to run a logistics company and is using his skills to add a level of much needed organisation. This is a great example of using transferable skills for crisis management and I feel I can do the same. John went for a week and is staying for three months! He is also responsible for setting up the idea for volunteer houses which I intend to support.
You've already raised more than your target of £400 but the fundraising continues, what do you plan to do with all the extra money raised?
I've been blown away by the support I have been given, my fundraising is currently at £1120, however I am committed to raising more money to help even more volunteers come and offer support. As I said before, the extra money will go towards John's efforts to rent houses for volunteers.
You've planned the one trip but with so many people still fleeing their homes what do you want to achieve in the longer term?
In my head I would like to see a rolling group of professional volunteers continuing the work. When I have a better idea of the realities involved I plan on pulling together people from the child support world who are willing to help me set up something more sustainable.
Since the refugee crisis hit the headlines there have been several comments from people saying we should support our own homeless people first, particularly ex-service personnel. Are they right?
I am dubious to the real meaning of this suggestion, Firstly I don't recognise a difference between one person who needs help and another, we are all from Earth, and secondly, most of the people I have heard use this argument have done very little to offer help to those that they think have priority. I have spent years volunteering with Crisis, working with London's street homeless people, many ex service personnel, I would be more than happy to offer advice to those that see this as an option for their own volunteering efforts.
What about people who are concerned that by offering help we are just encouraging more people to make the perilous journey to Europe and that more parents will be putting their youngsters in danger?
If the only option you have is to risk your family's life at sea then it gives some indication of the scale of danger they are fleeing. There is good cause to offer safer assistance to those that are displaced and in transit and I believe the humane thing to do would be to spend public money and military time on evacuating these folk safely.
If people are unable to donate financially are there other ways they can help?
The biggest free thing to do is to talk to people, educate them on the reality, we can't rely on our media to tell an impartial story so let's tell our own.
Crowd fund! I've never done this before and am blown away by the amount of support I have received. People want to help, but sometimes don't know how. Why not help raise money for existing projects?
And finally do you have a message for anybody who has already donated or is planning to?
Firstly, those that have given, spent time, donated goods or have been sharing their stories, thank you, it's great to be a part of something better than what our world leaders are offering and your help will make a difference.
Those that are thinking of helping, do it! You may have noticed a lack of the big charities in Calais, the feeling is that they are holding off for political reasons. What we have left are many well meaning crowdfunder projects, it's really a case of putting your trust into something you are not sure about. I hope I have been able to reassure you that every penny that I raise is to maintain volunteer support in the refugee camps, and one person at a time we can all make this crisis a little brighter.
If you would like to make a donation you can find Rob's crowdfunding page here.
Please consider offering help in any way you can, writing and sharing posts, not just this blog (although thank you if you do!) may not feel much but every Facebook post, every Tweet that recognises the humanity of refugees is adding to the noise that Governments will have to respond to. We can't let the overriding narrative be taken over by the negative, by those who choose to see our fellow humans as them and us.
No comments:
Post a Comment