Mobilising for refugees

Mid-Wales Refugee Action

+ Organiser / Faciltator
+ Border Crosser
+ Convoy Coordinator
+ Bike Mechanic

In 2015 hundreds of thousands of refugees fleeing war torn countries and seeking safe passage into Europe were violently rejected entry and took enormous risks with their lives crossing the mediterranean.

Although there had been a refugee camp in Calais for many decades, the recent influx of new refugees meant that resources distributed by local NGOs were becoming scarce. Food and shelter for the new refugees was in high demand.

In response to the 2015 refugee crisis, I coordinated an action-led community group in mid-Wales. We initiated several aid convoys to the Calais refugee camp including a two-week bike workshop in the camp with Help Refugees; distributed community resources via an info ‘pop-up’ infoshop in Machynlleth; took part in national awareness raising actions such as the Critical Mass to Calais, and Bridges not Walls; and delivered PR and communications on community responses to the crisis via local, national and international media.

Mid-Wales Refugee Action - this amazing organisation continues to deliver aid for refugees stuck in transit and camps across Europe. Please donate, like and share. The ongoing incredible work of a small group of committed citizens deep in the valleys of mid-Wales gives me so much hope for what we can achieve for the future.

CONTENT LINKS

MWRA Find out more about this fantastic organisation. After setting up as a volunteer group during the 2015 refugee crisis, MWRA is now a much bigger operation. It’s been a joy watching the project grow from a small group of people taking action together, travelling to Calais in a little yellow van, to the established organisation continuing to reach thousands today. I salute you!

Critical Mass to Calais Op Ed In response to the Critical Mass to Calais, I wrote an editorial piece on my experience.

Fixing bikes! Fixing bikes as direct action. Facilitating movement between the Calais camp and the asylum centre in Calais town centre where refugees had to go to fill in forms. Me and a small team of mechanics set-up a daily bike workshop on one of the main drags in the Calais camp, and facilitated hundreds of refugees to fix their bikes to make their journey into town a bit easier.