Today, as people around the world remember World Refugee Day, a new book by NACCOM Coordinator Dave Smith entitled Refugee Stories is being released on Amazon. The book follows the amazing stories of seven people from six different countries who fled persecution in their homelands and came to the UK to seek asylum.
The stories are told in the first person, from birth up to the present time: why and how they fled, their journeys to the UK and their treatment here. All are very individual, varied and heart-rending, but all have a common theme – the refugees were all initially refused asylum and made destitute. All are well known to Dave Smith, who founded the Mustard Tree and Boaz Trust charities in Manchester, and through the help of those charities they were able to make a fresh asylum claim. Six of the seven now have refugee status and are making a great contribution to British society. The seventh is still in limbo and not allowed to work or claim benefits despite being a skilled electrician.
Refugee Stories is a timely insight into the realities of the refugee crisis, especially coming out during Refugee Week 2016. It is endorsed by Maurice Wren, CEO of Refugee Council and the Bishop of Manchester, amongst others. It will be available in bookstores on June 24th.
