IWS RADIO International Women* Space

IWS RADIO #16 | Ukraine: BIPoC refugees reflect on their experiences nine months on by International Women* Space

On February, 24, 2022, the Russian army attacked Ukraine forcing millions of people to flee their homes seeking safety and protection within Ukraine itself or to neighboring countries. Faced with such an emergency, European countries decided quickly and without much bureaucracy that Ukrainian refugees would receive temporary protection for up to three years without having to apply for asylum, with rights to a residence permit and access to education, housing and the labor market. However, not all people fleeing Ukraine could access such freedom of movement or protection. Black and brown refugees were met with a different kind of welcome at the borders and beyond them.

To talk about this situation Jennifer Kamau speaks with Nora Brezger from the Flüchtlingsrat Berlin and Dalís Pacheco Salcedo, from the Universität der Künste Berlin.

On the occasion of 25th of November, the Day of Elimination of Violence Against Women, the gender and migration working group of WIDE+ met in Berlin to discuss the persistence of violence against migrant women in Europe, and to plan and create a collective response and resistance against violence, in all its aspects - gender-based, structural and/or institutional violence.

IWS RADIO invited a few participants from different European countries, to share the stories of their respective and common struggles, to speak about their political work and organisations. Listen to hear stories of migrant women making a difference.

Moderated by Jennifer Kamau and Denise Garcia Bergt from IWS.

With music by Vivir Quintana and Soundz Of the South.

M, a new IWS member, joins Jennifer to share the ins and outs of navigating the asylum process while also being queer and trans. M gives a detailed glimpse into the entire journey from the initial airport procedures to life in the Lager - and the crucial information and support that enabled her to go through it all. Then shifting from the personal to the political, the two discuss the ways that Germany’s image as a ‘queer haven’ is in stark contrast to the brutal realities facing those seeking asylum as a queer person.

With music from Blaq Diamond and Pedro Capó & Farruko

With European countries tightening migration even more after the ‘Summer of Migration’ in 2015, 500 people from Yemen arrived on the South Korean island of Jeju in 2018 seeking asylum. In response, 700 million people signed an online public petition against their asylum acceptance and a constitutional amendment on asylum law. The fierce backlash in South Korea came from not only nationalists - but also people who had declared themselves as feminist. Young-Rong Choo and Aram Lee join to discuss the reckoning this moment sparked for the feminist movement in South Korea and how migration, racism, and feminisms from South Korea to Germany are deeply intertwined.

With music from Kkot-Da-Gi and Girls’ Generation.

After a long break, IWS RADIO returns with our first program in 2021. We pick up where we left off: discussing the brutality of the EU border politics. Jennifer is joined by Zahra and Anna – two Berlin-based activists – to talk about the inhumane living conditions created by the EU border and asylum policies in Greece and Germany. Zahra shares her experience of living in the Lesvos refugee camp with her family and her time organising with the women’s group at the camp. Anna explains how migrants can become illegalised in Germany – often after coming from an entry country like Greece – and what the Legalisierung Jetzt campaign is doing to fight for legalisation for all.

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With music from Ghawgha Taban and Eric Wainaina.