Hey friends! If you don’t know from previous posts, I am connected to various refugee communities in the U.S., with the goal of living overseas in the future.
For the past couple years, I’ve volunteered with World Refugee Day Chicago. We are an event-based organization that seeks to celebrate and uplift refugees while creating meaningful relationships across local communities. We imagine a future where inclusivity and unity embrace our communities, where refugees, asylees, and immigrants are celebrated in all their fullness.
I currently serve as Marketing Chair for our year-round events.
Today, in just over an hour, we’re hosting our annual Community Conversation. This year, the topic is on alternative resettlement methods. We’ll have a virtual panel of community psychologists, scholars, paralegals, and refugees in nonprofits, and we’ll spend some time in breakout rooms on the end.
As a grad student in forced migration studies, I’m thrilled at the opportunity learn from the panelists today! Please join us if you live in the United States and are interested in refugee work, forced migration, and contributing to your own refugee communities.
Of course, our most highly anticipated event is the annual summer celebration, which always falls on the Saturday closest to World Refugee Day itself. This year it coincides with Juneteenth (June 19, 2021).
This year, as we continue to keep the public health of our neighbors in mind since people are still being vaccinated, we are livestreaming the celebration. You won’t want to miss the real-time event!
We’ll have dance and music performances with artists from Peru to Uganda, and the family hour, while also including children’s book readings, will also feature a time for you to get on your feet and dance along! Plus, we’ll display highlights from the annual soccer game, so tune in to cheer for your team!
During the celebration this Saturday, WRD Chicago will spend some time honoring refugees around the world, noting a few specific current crises, and will give homage to the legacy of Juneteenth given that we’re sharing the weekend of celebration.
Please follow our social media accounts on Facebook and Instagram, and check out our new website, wrdchicago.com! You can find additional event information, including livestream links, both here and here.
WRD Chicago is a grassroots volunteer org centered around community and celebration. We try to make all our events and resources accessible, including being creative with our communication and being multilingual. If you’re in the Chicagoland area and interested in learning more, our team would love to connect! You can email chicagoworldrefugeeday@gmail.com.
As Marketing Chair this year, I can confidently say that we’d all love to have you join in the celebrations! We want to see the culture shift to become more welcoming toward refugees, asylum seekers, and other immigrants as well, and that starts here.
Happy World Refugee Day!
katelyn skye bennett 