What can you do to help refugees?
Here are some suggestions.
Donate effectively.
Sometimes, donations are not suited to the needs of the time and the circumstances, or it is very hard for them to reach their destination. That is why more experienced organisations recommend you donate your money to organisations working on the ground. Here is a list of them.
Offer to assist refugees
ADULTS Adults coming to Barcelona will not need to be lodged with the city's families during the initial stages. The state’s host programme covers their needs for the first few months and provides them with professional support for settling in and starting their new life project.
It is here, during the later stages, that there is a host programme in Barcelona for these individuals. If you are interested in providing accommodation for adults in your home and you would like to find out how to do this, please ask for further information from llars_acollida@bcn.cat.
CHILDREN AND/OR TEENAGERS The Government of Catalonia is responsible for child refugees. If you would like to take in an unaccompanied child, you will need to contact the Directorate-General for Child and Adolescent Care (DGAIA) and explain that you are interested in doing this. You can call 116 111 or send a message to dgaia.dso@gencat.cat.
Note too that there are families in Barcelona, many of whom are migrants and refugees, whose various circumstances mean they temporarily need help from others to look after their children.
We invite you to find out about the Collaborating Families Service, a municipal family-support project that also requires city-resident involvement.
Become a member or volunteer.
Volunteer to provide support for refugees. It falls to institutions and professionals to cover the basic needs (food and accommodation) and provide psychosocial assistance for these people, but they still need support in the processes to help them become independent and be a part of everyday social life. The Catalan Federation of Social Volunteering provides this form to channel requests for participation.
Accept migrations.
They are an inherent part of the human condition. No one abandons or flees their country without good reason. Remember the Catalans who were forced into exile and emigration between 1939 and 1975 and think about the people who are leaving now. Take an interest in the migrants who are already here and in their history and current situation. Migratory flows mean cities are more and more culturally diverse, and this diversity is a factor that enriches us all.
Get trained, inform and make people in your circle aware.
Share information on the causes of the crisis and on asylum, refugees and migrations and help to spread the concern. You can get your residents', cooperative, sports or cultural associations involved.
Teach this.
In education centres, in esplais, in scouts' groups and in universities. We have to tell young people and children what is happening. The City Council's Area of Innovation, Programmes and Training has created a space with reference articles and proposed classroom work for the city’s education centres. The Escola de Cultura de Pau [Peace Culture School] and the UB Solidarity Foundation, among others, have resources and activities for the education community which raise awareness about forced displacement. At LaFede.cat you will find educational guides for working on the consequences of war or the role of civil society in peacebuilding.
Challenge rumours and stereotypes.
Discourses that instil fear and rejection can, over time, lead to racist, xenophobic and Islamophobic attitudes. The Barcelona Anti-rumours Network has a catalogue of activities for challenging rumours and stereotypes about cultural diversity and has published specific manuals for countering rumours about coexistence, the labour market, commerce, the public health service and social services.