Unity is a volunteer-run organisation which provides support for
asylum seekers
An asylum seeker is a person who leaves their country of residence, enters another country, and makes in that other country a formal application for the right of asylum according to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights Article 14. A pers ...
and
sans papiers
Illegal immigration is the migration of people into a country in violation of that country's immigration laws, or the continuous residence in a country without the legal right to do so. Illegal immigration tends to be financially upward, wi ...
in
Glasgow
Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...
, Scotland. The Unity Centre opened in 2006 and is in
Ibrox, near the
Home Office
The Home Office (HO), also known (especially in official papers and when referred to in Parliament) as the Home Department, is the United Kingdom's interior ministry. It is responsible for public safety and policing, border security, immigr ...
Immigration Centre.
Support
Volunteers are involved with a range of activities:
* Providing practical support and information to asylum seekers and their families.
* Taking details of asylum seekers reporting at the Home Office Immigration Centre so that their families, friends and lawyers can be alerted if they are detained
* Providing a night shelter.
* Running a bi-monthly group to help
LGBT
LGBTQ people are individuals who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning. Many variants of the initialism are used; LGBTQIA+ people incorporates intersex, asexual, aromantic, agender, and other individuals. The gro ...
(lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) asylum seekers adjust to life in Glasgow.
* Helping to organise demonstrations to highlight the treatment of asylum seekers in the UK.
Night shelter
Unity is one of the organisations involved in running Glasgow Destitution Network’s night shelter. The shelter provides temporary emergency accommodation for people who are not entitled to any other shelter or hostel. , the shelter has capacity for 15 male asylum seekers who have had their applications denied.
History
UNITY: the Union of Asylum Seekers was formed in 2005, providing a focus for
human rights
Human rights are universally recognized Morality, moral principles or Social norm, norms that establish standards of human behavior and are often protected by both Municipal law, national and international laws. These rights are considered ...
issues at a time when the
Home Office
The Home Office (HO), also known (especially in official papers and when referred to in Parliament) as the Home Department, is the United Kingdom's interior ministry. It is responsible for public safety and policing, border security, immigr ...
was using
dawn raid
A police raid is an unexpected visit by police or other law enforcement officers, which aims to use the element of surprise to seize evidence or arrest suspects believed to be likely to hide evidence, resist arrest, endanger the public or offi ...
s to instigate deportations. Unity was involved with organising protests against this. The organisation had been involved with notifying when people were detained and sent to
Dungavel
Dungavel Immigration Removal Centre is an Immigration detention in the United Kingdom, immigration detention facility in South Lanarkshire, Scotland, near the town of Strathaven that is also known as Dungavel Castle or Dungavel House. It is opera ...
or other
detention centres. They have advocated alternatives to detention, especially where children are involved. They have campaigned against the enforced returns of
Somalis
The Somali people (, Wadaad's writing, Wadaad: , Arabic: ) are a Cushitic peoples, Cushitic ethnic group and nation native to the Somali Peninsula. who share a common ancestry, culture and history.
The Lowland East Cushitic languages, East ...
.
See also
*
Immigration
Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not usual residents or where they do not possess nationality in order to settle as Permanent residency, permanent residents. Commuting, Commuter ...
*
Modern immigration to the United Kingdom
Since 1945, immigration to the United Kingdom, controlled by British immigration law and to an extent by British nationality law, has been significant, in particular from the former territories of the British Empire and the European Union.
...
*
United Refugee Organization
The United Refugee Organization is a non profit freelance organisation whose aim is to foster unity and promote forums, good will, and cohesive interactions between refugees from all backgrounds. It is a refugee body whose other objective is to he ...
*
No Border network
The No Border Network (In the United Kingdom also called "No Borders Network" or "Noborders Network") refers to loose associations of autonomous organisations, groups, and individuals in Western Europe, Central Europe, Eastern Europe and beyond. ...
*
No one is illegal
No one is illegal is a loosely connected international network that advocates for refugees and migrants present in a country unlawfully. Activists in the network take initiatives in favor of undocumented migrants who stay in a country illegal ...
References
External links
* {{Official website
Organizations established in 2006
2006 establishments in Scotland
Forced migrations in Europe
Immigration to Scotland
Refugee aid organisations in the United Kingdom
Right of asylum in the United Kingdom
Organisations based in Glasgow