Refugee Support helps refugees strike a pose in cultural fashion show

Refugee Support, MST’s specialist refugee and asylum seeker support service provider, will be holding an event to celebrate the cultural diversity of refugees within the Yorkshire and Humberside region. On Friday 20 June, Refugee Support will host an event which will encompass a unique fashion show showcasing cultural attire from countries of the refugees.

It is hoped the images from the show will be used to create a 2009 cultural calendar to further celebrate cultural diversity of the refugees within the area.

The models for the event will be the refugees themselves, some of whom will be making outfits especially for the event. There will be over seven outfits being showcased on the day from countries such as Eritrea, Cameroon, Burundi, Angola & Gambia. Refugee Support will be photographing the show and intend to launch the calendar to later this year.

The event is part of Refugee Week and it is hoped to give people from the local community an opportunity to see and learn more about the history and culture of refugees. The theme of the event will be ‘different pasts and shared futures’ and will be used to build a stronger rapport between the varied cultures and sub communities within the region.

The day will also see an array of activities which include:

• break dancers; with group members from various nationalities
• food and refreshments
• Zimbabwean poetry from service users Ras Kaimani Kalonji.

There will also be an awards ceremony with certificates being given out to mark both the completion of training courses and competitions undertaken by some of the refugees. There will be awards for a pool tournament and the Foyer Training Awards.

Barrington Brown, Community Initiatives Officer, says:”We hope to encourage positive and social interaction between the refugee communities and local communities via this event of arts, cultural and education, and also highlight the achievements of service users of the Refugee Support Station Foyer to the wider local communities”

Information, advice and support will be on hand for both local residents and refugees to provide greater insight and assistance on refugees, support offered and developments. Stalls on site will include: Sheffield Race Equality, Targat Housing Association and Burngreave Advocacy.

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