| An exciting week of events is planned by Brighton & Hove Libraries and partners to celebrate the power of community during this year’s Refugee Week, running from Monday (today 16th) to Sunday 22 June.
Refugee Week is a worldwide celebration of the contributions, creativity and resilience of refugees and people seeking sanctuary, centred around World Refugee Day on 20 June. This year’s theme, Community as a Superpower, highlights the power of everyday kindness, shared generosity and connection. Communities can bring people together, bridging divides and offering support; they are spaces of resilience and places for healing. This Refugee Week everyone is invited to spend time with friends and build new connections in and beyond our neighbourhoods – listening, learning, laughing together and sharing the feelings of welcome and belonging. Councillor Mitchie Alexander, Cabinet member for Communities, Equalities, Public Health and Adult Social Care, said: “I am very proud of our City of Sanctuary status and our continuous support of newcomers to our city. I look forward each year to the Refugee Week celebrations. “This year’s theme ‘Community as a Superpower’, honours the extraordinary power of friendship and connection. “Many of us, our family members (including my own grandmother who was born and raised in The Lebanon), friends, fantastic co-workers and people we meet every day, wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for migration. I truly value and love how enriched our lives, and our city are because of migration. “Refugee Week gives us an opportunity each year to honour the wonderfully diverse communities within our city, make new connections and celebrate the brilliantly colourful and unique fabric of our communities. “I invite everyone to take part in one of the fantastic events organised by our libraries and partners!” Brighton & Hove Libraries are dedicated to creating safe and welcoming spaces inclusive to all and making people with lived experience of displacement feel they are part of the Brighton & Hove community, which is also recognised by their Library Service of Sanctuary Award.
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This year, thanks to the Libraries Legacy Fund, the libraries were able to commission a guest programmer to curate and deliver events in celebration of Refugee Week. The commission was awarded to We Are the Tree CIC, a local, refugee-led organisation supporting the mental and social wellbeing of the refugee and migrant community. We Are the Tree CIC is dedicated to empowering those from refugee and migrant communities to share their expertise, knowledge and experience to create a sense of community cohesion and integration. If you’d like to discover more refugee stories, visit your library to discover curated stock collections, or browse the online library catalogue and Borrowbox. What’s on in the libraries Monday 16 June What About Us? We Are Brave, Different Brains 5.30pm to 6.30pm, Jubilee Library conference room Film Screening of We Are the Tree documentary, followed by panel discussion with Dr Sobhi Taqoob, Dr Yasein Algadal, Nada Gamaan and Sarah Berliner. This short documentary by Lotje Sodderland and Manal Ahmed is a moving reflection on neurodivergence stigma, and the barriers families face across race and culture. Refreshments provided. Organised in partnership with We Are the Tree. Book your space by e-mailing [email protected]. Wednesday 18 June The Network of International Women gathering 10am to 12 noon, Jubilee Library community space This group meets weekly at Jubilee Library and provide a safe space for women from diverse cultures and backgrounds to meet, share experiences and knowledge, and to support one another as well as sew, knit, craft and make friends. No need to book, just drop in for free. Thursday 19 June Story Tree 10am to 12 noon, Jubilee Library community space If you love stories and are a refugee or asylum seeker who wants to improve your English, join us for a weekly Story Tree session. Refreshments and snacks provided. No need to book, just drop in for free. Works With Us, Not for Us: Compassionate Practice Workshop 10.15am to 1.30pm, Jubilee Library conference room 2 A reflective, skills-based workshop for organisations and individuals working with refugees and asylum seekers. Facilitated by Dr Patrick Nyikavaranda and Manal Ahmed. Refreshments provided. Organised in partnership with We Are the Tree. Limited spaces. Book your space by e-mailing [email protected]. Saturday 21 June Pegasus Family Puppet Workshop 11am, Jubilee Library, children’s library Come along and make a new puppet friend in Refugee Week. Have fun and let your imagination fly as you create a puppet friend. Play with our puppet theatre and meet our puppets. Different styles of puppets will be available for you to choose from. For children from 3 upwards and their grownups. Free, drop in. Live music and poetry from around the world 12 noon to 4pm, Jubilee Library ground floor Hosted by Best Foot Music, we have an afternoon of live music from around the world, by people seeking sanctuary in Brighton & Hove. Music from Sudan, Syria, Ukraine, Palestine, Afghanistan and The Network of International Women One Voice Choir with Ken Wakia. Meet and find out about local organisations who are working with sanctuary seekers. Sunday 22 June Brighton Book Festival Family Day Jubilee Library, children’s library: 11am to 11.45am – Arts & Crafts with Afrori Books It is time for the glue sticks, the scissors, the creatives, the adventurous and everyone who likes to make stuff looking at travelling and making vessels. Suitable for children under 7 years old 11.45am to 12.30pm – Storytime with Afrori Books Don’t snuggle up. Get ready to move and shake and get involved with Brighton Book Festivals interactive fun Storytime, reading stories from around the world with their friends from Afrori Books. Jubilee Library, community space: 11am to 11.30am – Winning Ways Meet footballer and Premier League Young Writers Award Winner, Jeriah Boateng, who will be launching his first book Back in Time 11.30am to 12.30pm – Climate Change for Children with Mikaela Loach Leading climate justice activist Mikaela will be running this workshop for children showing them how they can be world changers. Suitable for children over 9 years old 1.15pm to 2.15pm – Open Mic with Little Green Pig Express Yourself! Children and young people aged 7 to 16 years are invited to share their words on the microphone and be free to perform whatever you want to share with this friendly family audience. All children attending the workshops will get a free lunch at 12.30pm. Book your free space via Brighton Book Festival website. Fabric of our Community Living Library Event 2.30pm to 4.30pm, Jubilee Library ground floor We live in a diverse community but what do we know about our neighbour’s cultural heritage? Meet a person with lived experience and find out. Refreshments and food to try. Stalls to browse. Organised in partnership with We Are the Tree. Exhibitions & ongoing events Taste Exhibition: A Project about Fashion, Identity and Representation Monday 9 to Sunday 22 June, Jubilee Library window gallery This exhibition explores the powerful role of clothing in shaping migrant and refugee experiences. Created in collaboration with Jollof Café and inspired by the New Union Flag project, participants used traditional textile patterns and personal silhouettes to express identity, heritage, and freedom of choice. Created by Dr. Gil Mualem-Doron of SEAS & facilitated by Isabel Mullery of Creativity Calling. Through Our Eyes: Finding Sanctuary Together Monday 9 to Sunday 22 June, Jubilee Library foyer In January 2025, Brighton & Hove Libraries commissioned Manal Ahmed to lead a series of creative workshops exploring what sanctuary means to individuals and communities. Local photographer Manal Gharez Eddin was commissioned to document the powerful moments at these workshops – from shared stories to creative expression – capturing the warmth, resilience, and connection that unfolds at the library. We Got the Power – a EuroMernet Exhibition Monday 16 to Sunday 29 June, Jubilee Library community space This exhibition features stories about the local as well as the UK-wide and global communities as “a hub of superpowers” in supporting each other and in creating the waves of change in the society, featuring photos, stories, poems, and statements by current and former refugees in the UK and around the world. Don’t Stop the Boats Artwork by Marla Gooch Monday 16 to Sunday 29 June, Jubilee Library young people’s area View artwork produced as part of Marla’s GCSE Art. She is now studying A Level Art with a special interest in Protest art. Storytime for preschool children and their parents/carers We extend a warm welcome to all families to join us for story time sessions celebrating community as a superpower.
Free, drop in. What’s on in the city Sanctuary Runners Brighton Launch 8.30am, Saturday 6 July, Preston Park Runners, joggers, walkers and talkers welcome! Sanctuary Runners enable people to run alongside and in solidarity with migrants, asylum seekers and refugees. Creating friendships, positivity and respect. Learn more on Sanctuary Runners website. The Preston Park ‘Park Run’ Sanctuary Runners takeover Saturday 21 June, Preston Park For a full programme of events marking the Refugee Week, visit the Sanctuary on Sea website. Simple acts of kindness Refugee Week is an opportunity to join people from all over the world in showing solidarity by taking part in Simple Acts – everyday actions we can all do, to stand with Refugees and Asylum Seekers and make new connections in our communities. Every action makes a difference, and when we come together, we are powerful.
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