on the morning train to Glasgow. There are Kurdish refugees from Iran here, going down to Glasgow for their interview. They're anxious, not just because the interview may well determine their whole future, but also because phone and internet service has been cut. They have no idea if their parents or partners--the people for whom they have made this risky journey-- are still alive. Oh, and they were shivering cold. A thin hoodie doesn't do much against January dark bleak mornings in Scotland.

Fortunately the train guard is welcoming and made sure they were safe. Not everyone here is so human.

#refugee #welcome #sanctuary #NewScots

on the morning train to Glasgow. There are Kurdish refugees from Iran here, going down to Glasgow for their interview. They're anxious, not just because the interview may well determine their whole future, but also because phone and internet service has been cut. They have no idea if their parents or partners--the people for whom they have made this risky journey-- are still alive. Oh, and they were shivering cold. A thin hoodie doesn't do much against January dark bleak mornings in Scotland.

Fortunately the train guard is welcoming and made sure they were safe. Not everyone here is so human.

#refugee #welcome #sanctuary #NewScots

In 2024, I asked "Why have there been *no* fascist riots in #Scotland so far?"

We now live with weekly xenophobic protests in several Scottish cities.

We still work very hard to make #NewScots safe.

From 2021-4 I worked with local government, the third sector, universities, and Scottish government on this : https://newscots.scot .

We are held up as an example by UNHCR of how to promote welcoming, trauma-informed integration. And it sort of works, even if it's unfunded. There is really awful white nationalist #racism in Scotland - nonetheless, attitudes here are more open and welcoming than in England. But it requires a continuous, thoughtful commitment across all layers of society. It isn't a "natural feature" of Scotland. We achieve this - and now that xenophobic, fearty politics is being normalised, we have to work much harder.

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