The UQ Library today recognised Refugee Week with a seminar intended to promote and encourage discussion of refugee issues.
Inspired by the Fryer Library’s Burnside/Durham collection, which contains correspondence between Australian activists and refugees detained on Nauru, the discussion brought together academics and community members.
Fryer Library Manager, Mark Cryle, said it was the first time this type of event had been held but had proven to be a great success.
“The Refugee Narratives seminar was an opportunity for us to not only showcase the significant collection of material on the topic held in the Fryer Library, but to provide a forum for academics and researchers to mix with members of the community and discuss refugee issues,” Mr Cryle said.
“A library is not just a place where information is kept and stored away; it can provoke discussion and foster research.
“The Burnside/Durham collection is an important example of the community value of preserving the narratives of real people and learning from their experiences. ”
The four-hour seminar included presentations from UQ’s Professor Gillian Whitlock, from the School of English, Media Studies and Art History, whose most recent book Soft Weapons: Autobiography in Transit is about life narrative and the war on terror; Dr Jeff Rickertt, a librarian at the Fryer Library; Dr Karen Dooley from QUT’s School of Cultural and Language Studies in Education; and Bruce Henry, an immigration lawyer who was formerly a member of the Immigration Review Tribunal.
Following the presentations was a panel discussion chaired by Adele Rice, a prominent refugee activist and Principal of Milpera State High School.
“The panel consisted of four community leaders from communities with significant numbers of people who came to Australia originally as refugees,” Mr Cryle said.
“Some are relatively recent arrivals, others have been here for many decades.
“Mr Trung Nguyen, who is originally from Vietnam, Ms Magdalena Kuyang, originally from Sudan, Mr Rafael Pacheco originally from El Salvador, and Mr Ali Karimi originally from Afghanistan were invited to form the panel.
“These people have all had personal experiences of living in and fleeing repressive regimes.
“They are respected leaders of their communities in Australia and were able to inspire passionate discussion.”
Mr Cryle said he hoped the seminar, which was booked out within days of being announced, had encouraged debate and inspired people to document and preserve the remarkable narratives of refugees.
Media: Mr Cryle (3365 6205, m.cryle@library.uq.edu.au) or Penny Robinson at UQ Communications (3365 9723, penny.robinson@uq.edu.au)
