Justice and Human Rights Germany Project #24495

Rehabilitation Support For Refugees in Germany

by IsraAID

Project Report | Sep 29, 2020
Refugees sew masks for Holocaust survivors

By IsraAID Staff | IsraAID Germany

It is a one of a kind project: refugees sewing protective masks for Holocaust survivors in the projects of IsraAID Germany. Towards the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, our refugee volunteers began making 150 masks each week in Berlin, Frankfurt, and Stuttgart, and donated to Holocaust survivors and other persons in need. So far, more than 30 persons with a refugee background took part in the initiative, and over 1,000 masks have been made and distributed. The project was enabled through the close cooperation with our local partner and their different project that support elderly holocaust survivors.

“We are very happy and grateful that young people, who came to Germany as refugees just like us, are thinking of us and have made these masks for us”, said Marius. Marius, now 79 years old, survived the Chernivtsi Ghetto as a child and came to Germany also as a refugee.

Marah*, originally from Syria and in Germany since 2015, says that she has learned in the Leadership and Participation project of IsraAID Germany “how we can be role-models within our communities and to be able to do that we have to deal with the history and circumstances in Germany. Many people think that we Muslims are automatically anti-Semites. I hope that with this work, we can show that this is not true. It was a moving experience for me to be able to hand over the masks to elderly people who survived the Holocaust, which I only really learned about in the last few years.”

Anna, Project Manager, is also extremely satisfied with the project. “The program was born out of necessity and has developed really well. Giving people meaningful tasks automatically leads to a change in mood, increase in confidence, and motivates them for other activities. At the same time, we can create acceptance of the refugees among the host society. By doing this, we are bringing together two groups who would otherwise seldomly have contact with one another.”

We appreciate your continued support while we continue this program in Germany.

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May 28, 2020
Improving Livelihoods During COVID-19

By IsraAID Staff | IsraAID Germany

Communities around the world have been affected by the recent coronavirus pandemic, and the refugee community in Germany is no exception.

Prior to the pandemic, IsraAID Germany was operating multiple leadership groups through the Kompass program. Through these groups, members were able to create micro-communities of refugees from different countries and cultures, coming together to create a generation of refugee leaders who are engaged in the wider society and investing their future into the local communities. These groups took the lessons that they learned through their previous development sessions, to be leaders in a country-wide COVID-19 assistance project.

Members of the Kompass program have created and edited videos, which train other refugees involved with IsraAID how to create protective face masks. Following the creation of the video, work stations were put in place in Stuttgart, Berlin and Frankfurt, allowing for small teams of refugee volunteers to sew hundreds of protective face masks. These masks are being sent out to refugee shelters around the country, as well as Holocaust survivors, homeless people, and the elderly, making sure vulnerable people nationwide have access to protection. So far there have been 30 volunteers working on rotation, to ensure that we keep to social distancing guidelines. Recently the volunteers have been producing 150 masks a week, but soon this will be increased to 200. As the volunteers become more experienced and comfortable with the process, we are hoping the number of masks that the teams can produce will continue to increase steadily.

Whilst many services, shops, and community activities are temporarily shut, the IsraAID volunteers are not only able to use their time productively, but through producing the masks, they are providing access to society for so many other refugees. Masks have been made compulsory on public transport and in many stores, to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. By IsrAID's Kompass leaders providing access to masks for vulnerable people around the country, these individuals are able to enter the supermarket, attend a religious service, or take a bus to a medical appointment.

Thank you for your continued support of IsraAID.

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Jan 31, 2020
Psychological Support for Refugee Children in Schools

By IsraAID Staff | Germany

IsraAID has been operating in Germany since 2016, shortly after the so-callled refugee crisis exploded, with thousands of people from Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq, Eritrea, Iran, and other places arriving in Europe searching for safety. Germany accepted more than 1 million asylum seekers, who made the treacherous journey to begin their lives anew. With such an overwhelming rate of cases to process and welfare to provide for newly arrived refugees, the German government is working alongside NGOs like IsraAID to ensure that those in need recieve food, shelter, language classes, psychosocial support, and other key services to helping them transition to their new lives in Germany.

IsraAID Germany implements two main programs. The first is a leadership program called Kompass, which creates a cohort of young refugee leaders commited to giving back to German society through community service. These groups undertake projects like supporting the elderly, distributing food to the homeless, and more, seeking to challenge the perception that refugees are always recievers of this type of support.

IsraAID Germany also provides psychosocial support to refugee children and adults in government and NGO-run shelters, set up to provide a transitionary environment for asylum seekers as they navigate the beauracratic and other challenges of restarting their lives in a new environment with a new culture in a new language.

IsraAID recently began working in Browdowin Elementary School, where some 33% of the student body is made up of refugee children. Twice per week, IsraAID art therapists provide sessions for children, built into their mandatory curriculum of classes. In addition, IsraAID staff members meet with parents on a regular basis to update them on the sessions, and provide training for the school's teachers, offering them additional methods of interaction and integration between psychosocial support and education.

Through this and other programs, IsraAID Germany is working hard toward the successful integration of refugee children into German society, by investing in key environments that will ensure they are able to learn, grow, and develop.

Thank you for your support of this program!

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