B
OSTON CENTER FOR REFUGEE
HEALTH & HUMAN RIGHTS
SPRING 2017 NEWSLETTER
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9th ANNUAL NCTTP SYMPOSIUM
Every year the National Consortium for Torture Treatment Programs (NCTTP) holds an all-day academic symposium in Washington D.C. to share the work, research and best practices of all of the different torture treatment programs. This year's symposium was held on March 6th 2017 and the keynote speakers were Dr. Jens Modvig, current chair of the United Nations Committee Against Torture and Dr. Pamela Collins, associate director for special populations at the National Institute of Mental Health and the director of the Office for Research on Disparities & Global Mental Health and the Office of Rural Mental Health Research. Many participants stated that it was the best symposium to date. Dr. Lin spoke about challenges families feel in their country of origin as loved ones seek asylum in the United States and after six years as the NCTTP's President, she was elected to the position again for the coming term.
ANNUAL VISIT TO THE CAPITOL
The symposium is followed by a day of advocacy at the nation's capital in which all of the torture treatment centers descend upon Congress to educate legislators on what our programs are doing and on our funding needs. Advocating for the Boston Center for Refugee Health & Human Rights (BCRHHR) took Dr. Lin and program coordinator, Robbie Adams, to the offices of Senator Warren, Senator Markey, Representative Clark and Representative Capuano, all of whom expressed their support for BCRHHR. Representative Clark is on the appropriations committee and her staff members were especially keen to hear about our program and its needs. We are very lucky to have such supportive law makers representing us and our clients in Congress during these challenging and uncertain times.
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WOMEN'S MARCH
On January 21st, 2017, the Boston Center for Refugee Health & Human Rights joined the Women's March on Boston Common along with thousands of other supporters of equality. Carrying the BCRHHR's colorful banner alongside people of different ages, religions, ideologies and backgrounds, the feeling of unity was palpable throughout the crowd. BCRHHR was proud to be a part of such a peaceful display of comradery in the city of Boston and throughout the world.
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OUTPOURING OF SUPPORT
A
s the forced displacement of people around the world continues, so does the empathy and outpouring of compassion from those who are safely rooted at home. The support that Boston Center for Refugee Health & Human Rights has received in response to stories of people fleeing torture, persecution, war and conflict around the world has been immense. The Center is grateful to experience this compassion first hand with the influx of requests to volunteer and help in any way possible.
An important way that people can help is by supporting our ability to serve clients and at that same time, educate the public about the populations we serve. People can do this by sponsoring fundraisers or donation drives in the community. Such events not only help BCRHHR keep its doors open but also offer an opportunity to discuss the real reasons why people are fleeing in such large numbers and why they need our help.
An example of such an event was hosted by the group called MA Artists for Change. MA Artists for Change organized a fundraiser on behalf of the BCRHHR at Out of the Blue Gallery in Cambridge, which brought together singers, dancers, poets and painters who all spoke about the need to support people fleeing from persecution. Ari, who is one of the BCRHHR's clients and a poet from Mexico, read a poem and talked about her experience as a refugee. She spoke about the perception of others and the power of the word "refugee"; a label that causes people to expect her to look differently or act differently from them. What came across as clearly as the words she spoke was her incredible resilience and ability to challenge us all to re-examine our perceptions about refugees and asylum seekers.
Events such as these are helpful in putting a human face on a problem that sometimes seems far away and hard to imagine. Many people reaching out to our center have expressed a feeling of helplessness in light of all of this suffering and one of the greatest ways to help is by educating your communities through similar types of events. Opening up a dialogue helps pave the way to more tolerance and understanding around these issues, in addition to helping us continue our work at BCRHHR.
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CARING COMMUNITIES INFORMATIONAL SESSIONS ARE BACK
Caring Community
have started up again this winter. These one-hour long sessions cover the different services offered at the Boston Center for Refugee Health & Human Rights and allow participants to ask questions about our programs. With so many people interested in the issues surround refugees and asylum seekers, this is an opportunity for people to learn in-depth what we are doing as a Center. It is also a chance for like-minded people to connect with one-another in an environment that facilitates interesting discussion. We hope these discussions will be shared with others outside of the caring community sessions so that support for refugees and asylum seekers will also spread.
Upcoming Caring Communities Informational Sessions are:
Friday, April 7th from 12 noon - 1:00pm
Tuesday, April 18th from 6:00pm - 7:00pm
Tuesday, May 2nd from 6:00pm - 7:00pm
To be sure that we can accommodate everyone, pre-registration is required.
We look forward to seeing you there and thank you for your interest in learning more about our organization!
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RPN IN THE SPOTLIGHT
The importance of Refugee Patient Navigators (RPN) to the staff of BCRHHR cannot be over-emphasized. These volunteers are the first point of contact for most of our clients and are vital to keeping the Center running smoothly. RPNs help clients navigate the confusing corridors of the hospital to find patient financial services, the food pantry and doctors' offices. They also offer hot drinks, snacks and essential items such as coats, toiletries and house-hold needs to our patients while they wait for their appointments with clinicians.
BCRHHR has been fortunate to have many wonderful and dedicated volunteers over the years including one who came back to being an RPN after going to the United Kingdom for graduate school. Katie Murray had been a Refugee Patient Navigator at the Center for about a year before deciding to study International Human Rights and Humanitarian Law at the University of Essex. Her decision to study at Essex was inspired, in part, by her experience as an RPN. She expressed that "the work the clinicians do at the Center inspired me to use my knowledge of international studies and law to address the struggles of refugees and asylum seekers."
Katie had the opportunity to learn more about these issues while visiting the refugee camp in Calais, France (known to many as "the Jungle") and also while volunteering with refugees in England. Visiting refugee camps first-hand brought home the point to Katie that addressing trauma in refugee populations is important for both the refugees and for communities where they are resettled. It also highlighted the importance of the work that BCRHHR is doing because, as Katie said, "Trauma from war and torture is something that many refugees suffer from and without addressing these concerns, they cannot take advantage of the opportunities given to them through resettlement...I am very proud of the center for working with refugees and addressing the physical and mental symptoms of their trauma so they are able to move forward and engage positively with the Boston community."
This may explain why she came back to the Center after attaining her master's degree. "The refugee crisis may seem more pronounced in Calais and Europe because of the proximity to the conflict but it is a global issue that requires a response from all countries. Just because the United States is not receiving refugees in the same manner as Europe does not reduce our international obligation to assist this population," she has said about the conflict. At some point in the future, Katie would like to take the skills that she has learned from her experiences in Europe and as an RPN to advocate for refugees and asylum seekers. We at BCRHHR have no doubt that she will successfully achieve her goals and continue helping these populations wherever she goes.
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