The Refugee Protection System is Racist and Colonial

BY: Sana Mustafa

Female CEO, refugee rights org, experienced displacement, highlights colonialism and white supremacy in global refugee system.

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Endlessly proving fact is tiring, but fighting to end stigmatization and oppression of forcibly displaced people by purported helping institutions.

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Father's disappearance in 2013 due to activism made me a forcibly displaced person, demanding freedom, justice, and the rule of law.

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Received message in US: "They took him. We are leaving." Lost father, home, and country as mother and sisters fled to Türkiye.

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Surviving as a queer, brown, forcibly displaced woman: fight for inclusion and rights spans Syria and new environment.

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Join our global dialogue experiment with media outlets to explore colonialism, white supremacy, and the refugee experience.

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Refugee protection system lacks space for firsthand voices. Silenced in policy conversations despite being a face for fundraising appeals.

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Blocked from decision-making rooms, Western 'experts' dominate refugee conversations without firsthand experience of displacement.

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