[Announce] Fw: News from the Belgium Catholic Worker

[Robert Waldrop]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Frank Cordaro" <frank.cordaro at gmail.com>

CWers;

I got the below e-mail from our friend and fellow 
CW Bernd Büscher in
Dortmund Germany. It introduces us to the newest 
European CW in Gent
Belgium. Please talk the time to view the youtube 
video -- with
English subtitles introducing you to the unique 
work CWers are doing
in Gent. I recomend you contact Bernd Büscher 
<BerndBuescher at web.de>
and or Fr Johannes Ghent CW 
<johan at catholicworker.be> if you wish to
find out more about this effort.

frank cordaro

--------------------


-----Ursprüngliche Nachricht-----
From: Fr Johannes Ghent CW 
<johan at catholicworker.be>
Gesendet: 06.12.07


Hi folks,

The local indymedia collective in Ghent made a 
short youtube-video
about our solidarity delegation for the refugees 
in Calais. With
English subtitles!

You find it with pictures on our Calais web page
http://www.catholicworker.be/calais.html

We are returning to Calais, in solidarity with the 
refugees living
there on the 12 th Jan.


Fr. Johan <johan at catholicworker.be>
Belgium Catholic Worker




-------------------------------------------------

Short Description of what is going on:


On November the 17th, Catholic Worker's Gent, 
organized for the second
time a (one-day) solidarity delegation to the 
refugees living on the
streets and in the bushes of Calais (France).


Since the closing down in 2002, of the center for 
refugees in Sangatte
(near to Calais), their have been living some 300 
refugees in the
region - a large part of them sleep in the open 
air and have been left
to care for themselves. The refugees stay in the 
region of Calais in
the hope of making the trip to Great Britain.



In January 2007 we organized a first solidarity 
visit. We were guided
around by Sylvie, a volunteer for the  Association 
Salam.


At present  Association Salam  provides daily hot 
drinks, soup and
bread for 400 people a day.


Many of the refugees survive by sleeping in the 
'bushes  in self-built
sheltering.


 It has been a very turbulent year; many times the 
refugees are chased
by the police with teargas and in recent case a 
refugee who fled away
ended up dead under a car. Almost all refugees in 
Calais are boys and
men. Last visit we met boys of 14 and 16 years old 
that were actually
traveling alone from Afghanistan to the UK.


With our delegations we want to show our support 
for the refugees, but
also for the volunteers who are helping them. In 
particular we will be
bringing winter clothes for men and raising some 
money for the work of
Association Salam. The short visit (one day) 
confronts us with the
hard reality of a closed Europe, and with people 
who are on the run
towards a new country. It shows us another, 
sometimes unknown, side of
the life refugees and immigrants have.


The delegation is organized by Catholic Workers 
Ghent together with
people from different social, church and cultural 
organizations who
are active with refugees.


Many greetings from the Belgium Catholic Worker

Fr. Johan <johan at catholicworker.be>