Refugee Week is the world’s largest arts & culture festival celebrating the contributions, creativity and resilience of refugees and people seeking sanctuary. Established in 1998 in the UK, this annual festival aligns with World Refugee Day, celebrated globally on June 20th.
There is a range of films available which you can access here and screen for free https://refugeeweek.org.uk/announcing-other-cinemas-free-refugee-week-film-programme/
Throughout the week there will be displays in libraries in Bentham, Ingleton, Settle & Skipton, & in Skipton Town Hall.
Limestone Books display, 3 The Shambles, Settle
Glusburn Institute Community & Arts Centre display of art work by children from Glusburn community primary school
12-28 June at Skipton Library display by Craven District of Sanctuary.
Publication of annual Fact Sheet by Upper Wharfedale Refugee Support group with Craven District of Sanctuary. Copies online, request hard copies from [email protected]
Saturday 15 June information stall outside Skipton library 10-12 Skipton Refugee Support group
Tuesday 18 June a refugee tent in Bentham High Street, donations for Care4Calais plus signatures invited to a letter for election candidates about Safe Passage Bentham Area Refugee Support group
Tuesday 18 June an online presentation at 7.30 pm Skipton Refugee Support group (for Zoom link email [email protected])
Thursday 20th June ‘Share a Cake’: a simple act. Settle Victoria Hall Gardens 2-4pm Settle Area Refugee Support group.
Thursday 20 June social evening 7-9 pm at Skipton Library Skipton Refugee Support group
Saturday 22 June 2-4 pm poetry reading event with readings around this year’s theme of ‘Our Home’ Settle Area Refugee Support group
Information about this year’s theme: ‘Our home’ https://refugeeweek.org.uk/theme-2024-ourhome/
“To me, a home is where you feel loved, safe, and cherished.”- Malala Yousafzai
The theme for Refugee Week 2024 is “Our Home”. From the places we gather to share meals to our collective home, planet earth: everyone is invited to celebrate what ‘Our Home’ means to them.
Home can be a place of refuge, a feeling or a state of mind. It can be found in smells, tastes and sounds. From the clothes we wear to the words we grew up with. It’s in food, music and arts. It’s in our cultures and in our landscapes.
Home can be more than one place and finding it can be a journey, as it is for so many of us who have to leave our countries and rebuild our lives. Sometimes we can find home in a single person. Other times it’s in a whole community. And often, it’s in a single gesture of care and welcome.
What would happen if this Refugee Week we extended our warmth and hospitality beyond our own homes and made entire neighbourhoods more welcoming? Simple acts like having a chat, walking together, or sending a message of welcome can help everyone feel like they belong. Together, we can work in solidarity to ensure all our neighbours, new and familiar, have safe and welcoming homes.
Our home is also global. We are interconnected; we share the earth’s resources, climate and its challenges. As we speak, millions of people are being displaced from their homes because of the climate crisis. But, exchanging knowledge, both new and traditional, can help us in practical ways to build hope for the future.
Together, this Refugee Week let’s practice our solidarity and make ‘Our Home’ a more welcoming, safe and sustainable place for all.