I know this isn't actually my 'politics' blog, but, as you know dear reader, sometimes those lines between what is work and what isn't blur, just a bit.
The issue of refugees is tied up quite closely with my courses in international security, how current governments choose to respond to questions of 'security' plays out everyday before our eyes. Today across Australia, thousands turned out to rallies in support of refugees and asylum seekers, in the hope that Australia, as a wealthy nation, can do much better than confine people to camps offshore, indefinitely. (Some time in the future, we will, I expect, look back on this particular era with some horror.)
In Brisbane, the focus was on the particularly jarring case of a young woman from Iran, Mojgan Shamaslipoor, who is currently detained in Darwin. She is enrolled in her senior year at Yeronga High School, as an adult student (she is 21). Friends, teachers, and her husband spoke with much passion about her and added strong pleas for her release and return to her community, our community. It was very moving.
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| A teacher from Yeronga High (l) and well-known refugee advocate Frederika Steen (r) |
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| Mojgan's husband Milad speaks to the crowd |
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| Mark Isaacs, whose book 'The Undesirables', revealed much of the horror on Nauru |
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| Part of the crowd |
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| Support |
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| We all captured moments |
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| Placards |
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| More placards |
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| Heartfelt feelings |
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| Part of the crowd |
I was impressed by the number of people there and the diversity of the community. Come on, Australia, this isn't hard.
As with all good rallies, this one concluded with a march through the streets. Regrettably, my cold is still in 'no, don't go there mode', but I felt it important to be there nonetheless.
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| 'Say it loud, say it clear, refugees are welcome here' |
My good friend and fellow # project365er Susan (susansnaps.blospot.com.au) was also there and will have much better people pics*. She is braver than I am, and a journalist, after all.
*OK, so Susan went off in a totally different direction via the Open House project, but check out her blog anyway. We occasionally do 'snap' the same subjects, quite coincidentally.
[Camera : Canon EOS60D, 28-80mm, 1.30pm-2.13pm]
