Imagining a more Welcoming Australia -World Refugee Day Forum – Ethnic Council of Shepparton and District

WELCOME. A simple word that means so much. A promise of warmth, friendship and love. For people fleeing places of danger, it means safety, and the opportunity to rebuild their lives. Australian Refugee Action Network will host an Online Forum on World Refugee Day, Saturday June 20th at 12:55pm. In considering Australia’s welcome to Refugees, we should all explore the question: What type of society do you want, for yourself, for your family, for your community?

WELCOME. A simple word that means so much. A promise of warmth, friendship and love. For people fleeing places of danger, it means safety, and the opportunity to rebuild their lives.

For many decades Australia has become home to thousands of people arriving as refugees and welcoming these people into our community has nourished us all. When we welcome others from different places and circumstances we all are enriched.

But since the 1990s successive Australian governments have punished people for seeking asylum with harsh policies including detention, banishment to remote islands and the indignity and uncertainty of being in limbo for years.

Policies that intentionally harm and traumatise men, women and children diminish us all. Done in our name, these policies generate a meanness of spirit, an absence of compassion and deplete our humanity.

What type of society do you want, for yourself, for your family, for your community?

Join us for a discussion on why a welcoming approach to people seeking protection is a good thing for the Australian community as a whole. Prominent Australians will share why they support refugees and people seeking asylum, and how we can be a more welcoming community.

Join this discussion with special guests including
Angela Fredericks (Back to Biloela campaigner);
Craig Foster (Game Over campaign );
Moz, who will join us from the Mantra;
Najeeba Wazefadost founder of Asia Pacific Network of Refugees.
Forum discussion will be moderated by Corinne Grant.

Opening comments and discussion moderated by Corinne Grant. Join us to imagine a more welcoming Australia.

This forum is hosted by the Australian Refugee Action Network (ARAN). Enquiries: austrefugeenetwork@gmail.com

Online Event
Saturday at 12:55 PM – 2:10 PM
To Join: https://amnestyau.zoom.us/j/94181882576
Hosted by Australian Refugee Action Network – ARAN

Australia's welcome to refugees — In considering Australia’s welcome to Refugees, we should all explore the question: *What type of society do you want, for yourself, for your family, for your community?*

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	The Ethnic Council of Shepparton and District acknowledges the Yorta Yorta People of the land which comprises the Goulburn Valley. We pay respect to tribal Elders, past, present and emerging and we celebrate their continuing culture and acknowledge the memory of their ancestors.
	The Ethnic Council of Shepparton and District is a peak body whose mission is to promote and represent the social, cultural and economic well-being of ethnic communities in the Goulburn Valley Region through the provision of quality and innovative settlement, refugee support, community development, and information and advocacy services.