Culture Bridge CIC - Creating space for migrant and refugee artists
Over the past few months I have been establishing myself as a freelancer, with the intention of dedicating my time to projects that align with my values. I want my working life to reflect my spirituality and to contribute positively to society.
In June, I attended Stockport’s first refugee consortium. I met many inspiring representatives from organisations supporting migrants and refugees, and I listened to courageous people who had been displaced, sharing stories that were both heartbreaking and profoundly moving. One of the speakers was Chinnar Najib, founder of Culture Bridge CIC, an organisation based in Hazel Grove that provides creative workshops and activities for refugees. They also run a communal band, WARAN, made up of an international group of musicians. I was struck by Chinnar’s strength and later had the privilege of meeting her and her husband, Amang, at their studio space.
Chinnar shared:
“I had a real life back home and I was happy, but we had to flee for our lives. When I came here, I felt like we were less than people it felt like no one even saw us. So we created something to not only share our culture but to learn from the place we now call home.”
Their Cave studio is tucked away at the back of an industrial estate, a small wooden cabin set apart from the noise of auto traders nearby. Inside, a wood-burning stove warms the space and the walls are decorated with their paintings. It has taken Amang two years to build this sanctuary, a labour of love that now serves as a place of learning and creative expression. I had gone to discuss funding opportunities and ways I might help develop their organisation, but our conversation turned to their journey, their art and the state of this country. I won’t attempt to recount the intimate details of how they fled the Kurdish genocide in Iraq, I couldn’t do justice to their experiences, but hearing their stories first-hand brought the realities of displacement into sharp focus, a reality often obscured in our society.
When I met with them again more recently, I was reminded of how crucial organisations like Culture Bridge CIC are in humanising refugees, countering the faceless portrayals of migrants that the media so often uses to spread fear. These are first and foremost human beings: artists, parents, compassionate people simply seeking safety and dignity.
At today’s jewellery-making workshop, a small group of refugee women from the nearby Britannia Hotel attended. Chinnar told me that in the previous session there had been forty women, thrilled to make jewellery for themselves at a time when they could no longer afford such things. But after a right-wing protest outside the hotel last week, many participants were too afraid to leave.
Through recent conversations with Annie Moulds, Migrant Communities Manager Stockport Council, I learned more about conditions in these hotels. It is important to dispel the myths created by the media, asylum seekers are not living in comfort with room service and a mini fridge. Rooms are overcrowded, with people often sleeping on the floor. Families with children receive just £9 a week to live on and single people receive nothing. Meals are regulated and residents are forbidden from cooking for themselves. One man saved up for a small gas hob to cook traditional Middle Eastern food for his family, a way of bringing them a sense of home, but it was confiscated. A proposal for residents to take on communal cooking duties, building pride, sharing culture through the sharing of food was rejected on the grounds that “they know nothing about health and safety.”
These stories make clear the urgent need for better opportunities and greater humanity. For my part, I will continue to use my connections and skills in cultural programming to support organisations like Culture Bridge CIC, creating spaces where refugee voices can be heard and celebrated. Their art should not be confined to narratives of trauma or displacement. Every human being has the divine right to creative expression, whatever form that may take, and I strive to help provide platforms where refugees can be seen, heard and welcomed.
There are divisive forces at work in this country, but there are also many of us committed to meeting displaced people with love, care and an understanding of our shared humanity.
