Just.Fair,Newcastle "StillHumanStillHere"

Sleep Out

Comments

Sleep Out

I support this campaign to end destitution. There is a huge backlog of people that the Government have not returned and many are simply unable to go back for good reasons like poor health or lack of co-operation from their home country. However there is very little reasonable support available for those in this situation, and they are not allowed to work, which forces many into the informal and illegal economies making them very vulnerable to exploitation of many kinds.

I carried out some research into this issue and found out that there are at least 300 asylum seekers that are destitute in Newcastle that I could account for who survive off charities, churches, and kind-hearted individuals simply to survive. I published my report into this situation called Destitute and Desperate that concluded that no-one was providing accommodation for these people in Newcastle.

Open Door North East tackle some of the issues of exclusion and extreme poverty that are being experienced by many Asylum Seekers who have been unsuccessful in their claim for asylum yet have not gone home. Now in Tyneside, after less than one year, we have 3 houses that give a home to 8 of the most vulnerable asylum seekers and we are expanding as quickly as our finances will allow. We take referrals from the two main voluntary sector agencies and work in partnership with churches, community groups, schools and statutory bodies to raise awareness of this issue and challenge some of the myths that have been propagated by the media.

We also campaign for changes to the law that give a fairer legal process and the right to work whilst asylum seekers are in this country. Many do not have their case properly assessed and I believe that there are many bad decisions being made by the Home Office.

Regardless of the rights or wrongs of these people being here to do nothing for them is unjust and inhumane. That is why we are supporting some of the most marginalised people in our country today as very few others are prepared to do so.