Update on 7th November 2010:
Thanks to everyone who has so far donated to the Positive Action in Housing/Glasgow University STAR Sleepout on 5th & 6th November 2010. Thanks also to A L Kennedy, writer, composer Craig Armstrong, Yasmin Alibhai-Brown, writer and broadcaster, and actress Sienna Miller for donating as well.
We did it!!!! On November 6th 2010, I slept rough for one night until 8am the next morning to raise money for the Hardship fund which provides food and shelter for destitute asylum seekers in Glasgow
Im now back home but im still feeling that cold. It was a bitter night. Please keep on donating as we have yet to reach our target of £24,000. Please forward our emails or texts to your freinds, family and colleagues and encourage them to make a donatrion, however small.
Please keep on giving to this page until 31 March 2011. So please, however small the amount, please help us keep the hardship fund going for destitute refugees . We welcome repeat donations....
Why im raising money for the hardship fund
Through my work, I come across many people, especially young people, pregnant women and the elderly. Many are from Iraq, Iran, Somalia, DR Congo, China and other countries with known records of human rights abuses. They have been forced out of their homes in an attempt to force them to return to their countiries of origin.
In March 2010, I came across the case of a family of three Russians, the Sehryk family. Sergue, Tatiana and their teenage son Stepan killed themselves by throwing themselves from the 15th floor of their YMCA rented flat at Red Road in Glasgow. They were told to leave their flat by that day, March 7. Their benefits of £105 per week had been stopped. The family were in genuine fear of being returned to their country of origin because of Mr Sehryk's links with Russian military intelligence. According to a lawyer that advised them, the family were utterly shocked to be told that if they did not return they would have to leave their flat, they would become destitute, be forbidden to work, and refused recourse to public funds or emergency housing. Tragically, the Sehryk family didn't overstay their 'welcome': the night before their suicide they left suicide notes and personal papers with a friend, and on the morning of Sunday March 7, their supposed eviction date, they jumped from the balcony of their 15th floor high rise flat. Their story became the subject of international media attention.
You can read about other families who were helped by the harfdship fund on pages 24 onwards of the PAIH annual report at www.paih.org.
I know other families who have considered suicide as an alternative to being returned to unsafe countries, women with young children whose children have been taken into care because they could cope no longer with the constant fear of refusal, and then the ultimate realisation that they will have to return, without having had a fair hearing.
The Hardship Fund gives a breathing space to people while they work out what to do when their money and shelter has been stopped.
The Destitution project gives people the time to find a lawyer, lodge fresh evidence or seek a judicial review of bad asylum decisions, which are becoming more comon under the "fast track" system.
The project provides a small amount of money for food, and arranges free, temporary shelter in someone's home for the most vulnerable. The Fund has helped young women, pregnant women, the elderly and those with mental health problems.
Positive Action in Housing now gives out £2,000 a month in hardship funds raised from donations to destitute asylum seekers and their families. My goal is to raise £24,000 - a year's worth of money!
That's why i'm going to leave my home and family and sleep rough for one night in Glasgow on 6 November to raise money for the Hardship Fund. To help people who have nothing else, and hopefully turn things around with the support of good legal advice and practicval support. Many families have gone onto secure leave to remain.
Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe – they’ll never send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to Positive Action in Housing Ltd's destitution fund, and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate.
So please donate whatever you can. Please ...