I had the privilege of speaking with the creators of the University of Utah’s Refugees in Action group, Christelle Gatoro and Aziza Hussein. U Refugees in Action is a campus organization dedicated to creating a safe space for immigrants and refugees. The group is also dedicated to educating people about current events that impact refugees and immigrants alike.
Tell me a little bit about the two of you.
Aziza and I both grew up in refugee camps in Africa. After many years of background checks and interviews, we were finally approved come to the U.S. We overcame many challenges in the refugee camp and in adjusting to our lives in the U.S. but we are very persistent and we both made it to one of the top universities in the country. We are taking our love for helping others to a whole new level and started a student group for refugees on campus to provide them with the space and support that they need to thrive and grow.
Christelle: I am from the Democratic Republic of Congo and I moved to a refugee camp in Uganda when I was six years old. I began most of my elementary education here in the U.S. and I am currently a sophomore at the University of Utah pursuing a degree in Social Work and Health Administration. I am currently a member of the Women of Tomorrow, the Black Student Union, and co-founder of URA on campus.
Aziza: I am from a refugee camp in Kenya. I was born in the refugee camp in 1995. I never got to attend school because girls did not have the same access to education as boys. Instead, I learned how to cook and take care of my younger siblings and father when I was seven years old. My family and I came to the United States when I was 9 years of age. The first thing that we experienced was cultural shock and the language barriers. I started school in the U.S. in third grade just because I was 9. After graduating high school, my dream was to go to the University of Utah. It was my first pick for college but I was rejected at first. I had to go through the whole appeal process and then was sponsored by the Center for Ethnic Student Affairs (CESA) for admission. After arriving here, I had a really hard time adjusting and felt like I could not find anywhere to belong. I found six other women who were having the same problem, so together, with the help of the Women’s Resource Center (WRC), we were able to create our own student group called Women of Tomorrow. Women of Tomorrow has been a great place for me and I felt like I finally found the belonging that I have been longing for. Last year, I was one of the leaders of Women of Tomorrow. But, I felt like my identity as a refugee was not completely addressed through Women of Tomorrow and so this year I am a member for Women Of Tomorrow and the co-founder of URA on campus with Christelle.
What is U Refugees in Action (URA)?
Christelle: The U Refugees in Action group started on January 2017 after the President issued the “refugee ban”. Aziza and I were very discouraged and felt that not only were refugee voices not being heard, but that no one really knew what refugees were and what it took to find refuge. We created this student group so that other student like us can have a safe space where they can speak about issues that impact them in a safe environment.
Aziza: I hosted a dinner shortly after the “refugee ban” was put into place because I realized that I was an emotional wreck and I did not know how to support myself, but I knew that if I was among other refugees it would be easier for me to talk about what I was feeling and dealing with. I have come to the realization that a lot of refugees are like me and feel more comfortable being with other refugees. With the help of Michelle Conley, who works as an advisor for the Refugee Education Initiative, I was able to get the food for the get-together. Christelle and I talked and came to realization that both of us were passionate about providing safe environment for refugees so we banded together and made U Refugees in Action.
What sorts of activities does the group do?
Our group is very new and we have great hope for the future of URA! We have hosted several events where we’ve used the opportunity to recruit students and make our club known on campus. We will continue to hold events for the remainder of this semester and we plan to officially start our weekly meetings in the fall of 2018.
What will happen at the meetings?
We plan to speak about issues that impact refugee students on and off the campus. We also plan on being involved on campus by volunteering and creating awareness of who we are and that we all have the same motives as students, and that is to succeed academically.
Tell me a little bit about your members.
Our members are currently all refugees. However, we do have few allies such as LGBT Resource Center, the Center for Ethnic Student Affairs and the Student Success Advocates. We plan to have other allies present during some of our meetings, but we also have to acknowledge that refugee students have been through traumatizing situations. Therefore, we want to be very careful in the kinds of people that we include in the group, because we want to avoid causing more problems for the refugee population than they already encounter on daily basis. We think that it is our responsibility to protect ourselves and our members from all harm, whether that be verbal or any other kind. We are open to and would love to have more allies working with us to make this group a success because it is a necessary addition to our university community, but we do ask that allies come with open minds and that they treat everyone with the utmost respect and dignity.
Why do you think that this is an important organization to have on campus?
We need to change the false narrative about refugees on our campus and in our communities. There are many negative connotations that come with being refugees and they are simply not true. We are not here to terrorize, we’ve experienced terror firsthand. We want the same things that everyone has and that is to raise our families in a safe environment and to prosper in our host countries. This organization is important because as refugees, we feel that we are more outspoken when we work and socialize together in groups. We feel safe to speak around people who have been through the same experiences that we have. We’ve also realized that there are not many programs on campus that cater to us specifically. We want to change that.
All of us at Her Campus Utah were so thankful to learn more about URefugees in Action. For more information, follow their Facebook page here!