Friends,

What a week. It’s so sad to hear of what has been occuring in France, Beirut, Iraq and Syria: of the extreme situations, opinions and beliefs that lead desperate people to do desperate things. Even sadder, perhaps, that the spirit of welcome so many have spoken of and embodied recently is being damaged by fear. More than ever, saying, shouting and singing #refugeeswelcome is a massively important thing to do.

At City of Sanctuary we know that the entire population of all the Muslim Extremist groups (Al-Qaeda, Boko Haram and ISIS) is only 0.003% of the world’s Muslim population. What the people who commit atrocities are doing is not the rule it is the sad exception, and thus it is news. There is so much more good in the world than bad. It’s for this reason that at City of Sanctuary we can create safe, fun spaces for powerful, fun relationships to be made and nurtured between those seeking safety and those who are safe. We know human dignity is resilient, upholding it often brings spontaneous joy, and only good can come from doing good.

So, a few fun things to get involved with this week: theatre, creativity and community fun. Come and laugh and learn and dance with us. O yes, solidarity can be fun, o yes. Looking forward to seeing you!

May you be always welcomed and welcoming,
David, Zhila, Charles, Anita, Diane, Omar, Fay, Jane and Maryam and all at City of Sanctuary

An amazing opportunity to see some powerful theatre about the struggle for sanctuary in this hard hitting, hilarious one man play.

Nine　Lives

Written by Zodwa Nyoni

Performed by Lladel Bryant

Directed by Alex Chisholm

 

Presented by Leeds Studio in association with West Yorkshire Playhouse

^{Some of us wanted to stop being afraid.}

^{Some of us wanted to find ourselves.}

^{Some of us wanted to belong.}

 

^{Zodwa Nyoni (West Yorkshire Playhouse/Channel 4 Writer in Residence 2014)}threads together humour and humanity to tell the real personal story behind asylum headlines.

Please view the trailer:

Pre-Show performance by refugee musicians

[email protected]

Music and song will be performed by some of Manchester’s leading refugee musicians from 6.45pm in the bar while audiences wait to see the show. There will also be an information stall hosted by City of Sanctuary Manchester.

Post-show Q&A

Please join us after the show for an opportunity to ask questions and engage in discussion about the issues raised by the play. Members of local refugee support agencies including City of Sanctuary Manchester will lead the discussion and will be able to provide information about their important work and how you can get involved.

There are a limited number of free tickets for refugees.

If you would like more information then please contact Harriet Morgan-Shami for more information:

https://www . youtube . com/watch?v=tnn-2bcgqhU&feature=youtu . be

 

Monday 16^{th November, 7.30pm}

^{Waterside Arts Centre, Sale}

 

^{Fleeing from his home where a fresh wave of homophobia threatens his life, Ishmael has sought sanctuary in the UK. Dispersed to Leeds, Ishmael waits to hear his fate, he waits for a new life to begin amongst strangers. But not everyone is bad}

 

^{… can he find a place to call home again?}

Our next conversation club will be on the 19th November. We’ll be making banners, playing jenga and sharing good food and conversation.

Where;
Cross Street Chapel, Cross Steet, Manchester M2 1NL

When: 19th November From 6-8pm.

ALL are welcome! Come and enjoy a positive atmosphere and make new friends.

We’re thrilled that The National Citizenship Service will be holding an event with us! We met with them on Saturday and there are some great ideas developing.

What: Celebration, Food and Fun
When: on the 21st November from 12-3pm
Where: OBA Millenium Center, Featherstall Rd North, Oldham OL9 6QB

There’ll be dance and singing, sport, food and fun. Come and join in! Free entry and travel expenses paid for those with no recourse to public funds.

 Please invite your MP to SANCTUARY IN PARLIAMENT! This is an amazing opportunity for MPs to meet sanctuary seekers from all over the UK.

Below you will find a cover letter you can copy and paste after putting in your MPs name, and you can find your MP and email them from this amazing website:

www . writetothem . com

What are you waiting for? Be the change! 🙂

Dear {NAME} MP,

You will be aware that we are currently facing the biggest refugee crisis since WWII.  You will also be aware of a huge outpouring of support, concern and compassion right across the UK. To date, one third of the population have given donations in cash or kind to support people seeking refugee protection.

For your opportunity to engage with the voices of refugees and their supporters from across the UK, we at city of sanctuary warmly welcome you to attend:

Sanctuary in Parliament
12.00 – 15.30
Tuesday 1st December 2015 in Committee Room 14

At 3.30 to 4.30 we will also be showing the moving and mouthwatering film Tasting My Future, an award winning documentary about asylum seeking women in Brighton.

Hosted by City of Sanctuary and Sanctuary Alliance partners, with the support of the APPG on refugees, it follows the hugely successful first Sanctuary in Parliament last year and will celebrate the progress made since the launch of the Birmingham Declaration in October 2014. Our supporters represent most of the UK and Ireland.

This event is an opportunity for you to hear from your constituents of our passion to welcome refugees and asylum seekers with dignity and respect. You will also hear from refugees themselves, who will share their life experiences of seeking sanctuary about their journeys to safety and the remarkable contribution they are making to society. We hope to share our vision of practical action and key policy changes that will ensure a culture of welcome for refugees across the UK. There will also be time to ask questions and to talk to us throughout the event.

One refugee who attended last year’s event stated that “the experience of being in Parliament will remain with me – I couldn’t do this in my own country.” One MP said “I want a City of Sanctuary group in my constituency!” The number of City of Sanctuary groups has grown in the last year from 35 to nearly 50.

Please join us for this exciting event, even if only for a short time, and stand with us to say ‘Refugees Welcome Here.’

Please RSVP for this event by contacting [email protected].   We will be in touch nearer the date with a full programme.

Yours sincerely

{YOUR NAME}

Please find attached here the job description for Ushers at the Royal Exchange Theatre.
Seasonal Ushers – 2015 . pdf
Usher – August 2015 . pdf

Please contact Tracie Daly for further information.
[email protected]

“The objective of the City of Sanctuary movement is to create a culture of welcome and hospitality for those seeking Sanctuary, Refugees and other vulnerable migrants amongst us” – Inderjit Bhogal, founder of City of Sanctuary

t: @ManchesterCoS f: /manchestercityofsanctuary w: cityofsanctuary.org/Manchester