REFUGEES and members of the Swan Hill community came together to share a laugh and a chat at the Uniting Church community issues group’s monthly meeting on Saturday night.
Uniting Church community issues group secretary Jan Ellemor said the group held the men’s gathering once a month, giving the refugees a chance to socialise with one another and with other members of the community.
“Two ladies from an organisation in Melbourne came down and spoke on the weekend, and let the men know that they are also able to do things like the rest of us,” she said.
“Most of the men don’t work because they don’t have working rights so you will often see them walking the streets, or kicking a ball down at Riverside Park.
“They do get some Centrelink payments, but compared to a normal Aussie man, it’s not much.”
Ms Ellemor said people in the community often asked why the men walked the streets, or why they had not found work, and that these events helped bridge the gap.
For more on this story pick up a copy of Wednesdays Guardian (June 8, 2016)
