Austin Celebrates
World Refugee Day!
Saturday, June 20, 2009
1:00-5:00 pm
Bob Bullock State History Museum
Featuring Live Performances
by Sara Hickman, WinoVino, El Tule, and a variety of refugee musicians and dancers!
An afternoon festival celebrating UN World Refugee Day will be held at the Bob Bullock State History Museum -- 1800 N. Congress Ave. at the intersection of Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd.
Come meet, learn more about and celebrate with some of Austin’s newest residents who have fled war, famine, and persecution to make a fresh start in our community.
This year’s celebration includes children’s activities, a traditional attire fashion show, music and dance performances from around the world.
Headlining the musical performances will be Sara Hickman, an uplifting and highly accomplished Austin singer-songwriter who has released more than 15 albums since 1989 (in addition to serving on the AAIM Board of Directors as Secretary in her free time!!); and WinoVino, an 8-piece acoustic ensemble whose influences range from Balkan brass to New Orleans jazz and Italian anti-fascist folksongs (featuring AAIM staff member Derek Hansen on drums).
The festivities will begin with the naturalization of 15-20 Austin area refugees who will become citizens in a special ceremony taking place in the Spirit Theater.
Background Information
Austin has long been a gracious host to US State Department-sponsored refugees, more than 10,000 of whom have been resettled in Austin since 1975. Last year alone, almost 800 refugees settled in Austin from several countries, including Afghanistan, Burundi, China, Congo, Cuba, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Iran, Iraq, Liberia, Burma, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Thailand, Uzbekistan, Venezuela and Vietnam.
Sponsoring agencies are African Society of Austin, Austin Area Interreligious Ministries (AAIM), Caritas of Austin, Center for Survivors of Torture (CST), City of Austin Refugee Health Screening Clinic, Heart of Texas Peace Corps Association (HoTPCA), Refugee Services of Texas-Austin (RST), the United Nations Association, and a number of community volunteers.
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) was established on December 14, 1950 by the United Nations General Assembly. The agency is mandated to lead and co-ordinate international action to protect refugees and resolve refugee problems worldwide. Its primary purpose is to safeguard the rights and well being of refugees. It strives to ensure that everyone can exercise the right to seek asylum and find safe refuge in another State, with the option to return home voluntarily, integrate locally or to resettle in a third country. In more than five decades, the agency has helped an estimated 50 million people restart their lives. For more information about refugee issues: www.unhcr.org/events/3e7f46e04.html
 International Refugee Day is free and open to all people living in Austin and surrounding areas.
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