- # We are Standing Strong with Refugees
Rise For Refugees~Taezia provides comfort, support, and helps refugees acculturate in India, honoring their resilience and spreading awareness.
Ever since we embarked on a journey to make better sense of this world and discover our true selves, empathy has been our constant companion. This was the genesis of Rise For Refugees – Project Taezia (Afghan word for comfort) which we had the privilege of conceiving and founding.
It was a chance encounter with Afghan and Rohingya refugees that introduced us to their world full of optimism. They shared with us their laughter and smiles, their excitement about the future and zest for life not their stories of despair and hopelessness, and their fear for life. We got to know how they were uprooted from their native lands and their hazardous journey of escape to India. It was excruciating to understand that their suffering didn’t end there. They still have to grapple with indifference, apathy, discrimination, and even racism in their daily lives as “unwanted” refugees. Their story evoked a deep sense of love and empathy within us. “Taezia” is an attempt to bring such people into the societal mainstream and help them integrate with the native population. We aim to support them on all fronts that can help them grow as a person, give them hope to follow their passion, bring art & craft into their lives, and educate them about their rights and opportunities in their new home!
To be a Channel of Conscious Commitment bringing respect for refugees through sustainable economic values and a holistic business plan.
Rise for Refugees collaborated with Don Bosco Society, UNHCR’s implementing agency, on this project and set out to do the following :
Teaching Classical Indian dance form, Odissi, to Afghan and Rohingya girls to familiarize them with Indian culture and heritage.
Organizing “Nukkad Natak” (street plays), to familiarize them with Indian society and its core values and characteristics.
Imparting English and communication skills to add to their confidence and self-esteem and enhance their employability.
Spreading awareness in society about refugees and their plight through education, media, and community outreach programs.
Taezia” taught us how the human spirit, injected with hope and positivity, can overcome the human limitations of our mind and our body and can project us on an upward trajectory irrespective of the monumental challenges and the bleak odds that confront us.
India’s refugee statistics for 2018 was 195,891.00, a 0.62% decline from 2017.
The unprecedented circumstances at present have multiplied the difficulties of refugees. While Lockdown has affected millions, we all are witnessing how humanity has come alive pulling out migrant workers, daily wage earners, and the underprivileged from misery to survive and somehow float through the crisis. Bosco Society is selflessly and with tremendous zeal has been working for the cause of refugees for years and now more important than home and job, is to fire the heart and the struggle to keep oneself alive! We request you to contribute wholeheartedly to refugees and make them feel they have reached, INDIA, their HOME! We want you all to rise for refugees with us!
