NCADC Campaigning Toolkit
Community support is of ever-more importance in fighting deportations. As the government tries to destroy community links between new migrants and local communities by increasing the use of immigration detention, and moving detainees continually within the detention estate, strong active communities uniting against injustice are more and more crucial.
Being a part of your local community has many benefits: communities can provide social and emotional support; being part of a community can be a way of making new friends, learning English, finding out about the UK; and there may activities you can get involved in. Keeping active can be very important, especially if you are not allowed to work, and you may be able to contribute skills and experiences to a local group.
As well as all of the benefits discussed above, having good community links is very important to a successful campaign. If your community already knows you, they will probably very quickly step up to help you out if something goes wrong (if your application is refused, if you are detained or you are facing deportation).
Your community is whatever you decide it is, but here are some suggestions for where you can meet people:
children’s school
college/university
church/mosque/temple etc.
country of origin community/regional (e.g. Pan-African groups; Francophone group)
identity community: e.g. LGBTI (lesbian gay bisexual transgender and intersex) group, older person’s group, HIV+ group
political groups – UK politics, or political groups active in the UK (e.g. the Zimbabwean MDC party)
professional groups including trade unions
asylum/refugee/migrants groups
neighbours
drop-ins
local community centres
These are all sources of ongoing support, and if you decide you want to campaign, think about which of these groups you could approach to support your campaign, even if they do not already know you.
TESTIMONY
Charles Atangana is a journalist who fled imprisonment and torture in Cameroon. Following a strong community anti-deportation campaign in Glasgow which gained support across the UK, Charles won the right to stay in April 2011.
"I was involved in community activities and around my trade union, the National Union of Journalists. I was completely integrated in the community and the society and felt welcome and less rejected. When I was facing removal back to my country, I received support from community based organisations which work with refugees and asylum seekers and churches as I was a member of a church. I fought with a huge backing of MSPs, MPs, trade unionists and community based organisations. All these have contributed to keep me safe and alive in this country. It is very very important to socialize first, integrate, speak to people, tell your story to people and work so that people who know you can come in force to fight with you against the Home Office decision to refuse you sanctuary…"
Not everyone who has been through the asylum or immigration system wants to be an active member of the community – some people want to just move on with their lives when they have leave to remain, or want to keep themselves apart from the community while they are going through the process
Not all communities will be suitable to approach – for example, some communities may not be supportive of someone seeking asylum because of sexuality, or if a community group is dominated by one political faction, and you are a member of an opposition group, you may find support lacking
Some people fear that information about them will get back to the authorities in their home country through country-specific community groups.
