Migrants' Rights Network

Weaponising Transatlantic enslavement to justify border militarisation, which operates on the same racial hierarchies that made enslavement possible, is abhorrent. https://buff.ly/3Z1bAQw #BorderViolence #Racism #Migration

Immigration raids are a racist intimidation tactic. They are meant to humiliate, intimidate, racially subjugate and inflict harm on the “Other”, specifically migrants and/or racialised people. Raids are designed to instill fear and disrupt communities, and operate as an extension of colonial ‘divide and rule’ tactics that create atmospheres of distrust and pit neighbours, colleagues and the wider community against each other. Most immigration raids take place as a result of low-grade intelligence such as ‘tip-offs’, including fabricated reports from rival businesses or gossip. This explains the low arrest and deportation rates (despite the increase) following a raid, and the “inefficacy” of raids for the purpose of deportations. The primary function of raids then, if not to deport, is to instil fear in migrant and racialised communities. We must resist raids together. Find out more about our new #HostileOffice report "Immigration Raids: An Anatomy of Racist Intimidation" :https://buff.ly/3T58Aio #ImmigrationRaids #AntiRaids #Migration #Colonialism #Racism #Deportations

With our friends at National Survivor User Network, we explored how Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) impacts people in the asylum system. We know that PTSD and similar experiences of mental ill-health can be brought on by numerous complex, intersecting factors. Ultimately, it remains difficult to predict who will be affected by such experiences and how severely. What is abundantly clear, on the other hand, is that people who migrate to the UK face major barriers when attempting to access PTSD treatment. PTSD causes a traumatic memory to become ‘stuck’, so that people experiencing it perceive that the event is still happening and they are in danger. Trauma itself can provoke physiological changes including rewiring the brain’s alarm system, an increase in stress hormones and alterations in how the brain files different pieces of information. This can manifest as ‘hypervigilance’ – the state of constant high alert to potential threats. Some professionals recognise a form of PTSD called Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (CPTSD) which can be caused by recurring or long-term traumatic events. Of course not everyone who experiences trauma will go on to develop PTSD. According to the National Health Service, about 1 in 3 people who experience severe trauma will experience PTSD. Read more: https://buff.ly/3WM7f2h #PTSD #Trauma #Migration #Asylum

Migrant workers are often charged extortionate and illegal fees, leaving them trapped in endless cycles of debt. Many sponsors outsource their immigration matters to third-party providers. This means that sometimes recruitment agencies abroad are the ones issuing sponsorship certificates to workers. There have therefore been instances where the workers arrive in the UK, only to find that the sponsor refuses to employ them because they do not know the worker as they claim that they have never issued any sponsorship certificate. Some workers are paying an average of £17,000 for the sponsorship certificate. MIGRANTS AT WORK LTD and Migrants’ Rights Network stand in solidarity with sponsored workers to demand an end to sponsored slavery. Read more: https://buff.ly/4dnHCu4 #JusticeForSponsoredWorkers #DebtBondage #SponsoredSlavery

"New report 📢 Immigration Raids: An Antomy of Racist Intimidation Following the Government's announcement that it is ramping up raids and removals, our new report shows #ImmigrationRaids are racist intimidation. Co-authored with academics Monish Bhatia and Jon Burnett, we dissect the secretive and opaque nature of Immigration Enforcement’s intelligence gathering, guidance on multi-agency operations and police cooperation. In addition, we have found raids have a disproportionate impact on racialised communities and act as a method to divide or intimidate migrants and People of Colour while making millions for the #HomeOffice in the process. As politicians signal that raids are likely to increase, it is vital we stand up and send a clear message to the State: our communities do not consent to raids. Read our #HostileOffice report here: https://buff.ly/3XHGbAd We are also launching a new Reporting Tool to report and log immigration raids in your areas. This will serve as a tool to log immigration raids in your local area and we will soon be publishing a map tool alongside this. Stay tuned 📻 Access the reporting tool here: https://buff.ly/4cA86rt

The Government has just announced its plans to deport 14,500 undocumented migrants within six months, via the expansion of detention and removal centres, and the expansion of the National Crime Agency to target “people smuggling gangs” and “stop the boats” in cooperation with European agencies. This all signals confidence in the rhetoric of border militarisation and Islamophobic counter-terror powers, and an inclination towards criminalising survivors of trafficking. Nine deportation flights have taken place since the change in Government, including a flight with over 200 people, and specifically the deportation of 46 people, to Vietnam and East Timor, as a result of a returns deal with Vietnam. New returns deals have also been signed with the Governments of Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Nigeria, Serbia and Georgia. Deportations are always cruel, even if they are framed as “voluntary”. It doesn’t matter where someone is deported to, because deportations inherently violate someone’s right to stay where they have chosen to build their home. At the Migrants’ Rights Network, we call for an end to this cruelty: to deportations, returns deals, and border militarisation. We urge this Government to scrap these oppressive plans. Read more: https://buff.ly/3MeukVb #Deportations #MigrantJustice

We spoke to the Morning Star about the Scottish Government's decision to axe free bus travel for people seeking #asylum in Scotland. The scrapping of this initiative will increase the risk of #destitution, as people seeking asylum will have to continue to balance transport costs against food, medicine and other essential costs. It will also increase isolation, as well as limit the ability of people seeking asylum to be in community with each other. Read more: https://buff.ly/3WOmuXc #MigrantJustice

"We know of course that there really is no such thing as "the voiceless". There are only the deliberately silenced, or the preferably unheard". -Arundhati Roy Migrants aren't voiceless. They're voices are just not being heard, especially if they are Black or Brown. #WordsMatter #LanguageMatters #DefyTheNarrative https://buff.ly/4du6RLB

#Visa schemes are an example of the State’s belief it has the right to decide who is welcome within its borders, and at what price. Since the second half of the 20th century, British governments have been removing citizenship and free entry entitlements to citizens of Britain’s former colonies. In its place, lots of limited visa systems have been introduced, including for specific nationalities. This creates an increasingly large and insecure class of migrant workers, where visa schemes treat people as capital. This is a form of #RacialCapitalism or commodification where people are turned into objects when selling their labour. We explore the problematic nature of UK visa schemes in our new #HostileOffice report: https://buff.ly/3WtgHHL #Colonialism #Capitalism #HomeOffice #UKImmigration #MigrantJustice

MRN are reaching out to invite values-led grassroots organisations, community groups, activists and individuals with lived experience of migration to engage with and join the Network. If you would be interested in building a relationship with MRN and getting involved in our work - such as shaping events, workshops and blogs, engaging in joint power-building practise, narrative change work and advocacy, co-creating a campaign, learning opportunities, telling your story or organising your community - then please contact Toby Nicholas, the Community and Capacity Building Manager, at [email protected]. We are also surveying communities to find out more about what issues grassroots groups, individuals and larger organisations are facing, as well as capacity gaps. There are 2 surveys, one for individuals with lived experience of migration and one for representatives of organisations. Click here to find out more: https://buff.ly/3AqgUme Please note: surveys are specifically aimed at London-based organisations/groups/individuals. #NarrativeChange #Community #MigrantJustice