Our Outreach Team attended the Scottish Annual Human Rights Conference in Glasgow organised by the Human Rights Consortium Scotland on Tuesday. Two hundred people signed up, with attendees coming from international activist groups, Scottish charities, third sector organisations, and universities.
The main takeaway of the day is that rights are lived, not spoken about.
As Scotland, and the world, faces an erosion of human rights, and the UK Government considers leaving the European Convention of Human Rights, it is an essential time to reflect on what everyday people, organisations, and governments can do here, and abroad, to further protect and strengthen our human rights.
We attended the Migrant Rights workshop, where representatives from Migrant Voice, Worker Support Centre, and the Worker’s Observatory shared their learnings from working with migrants across Scotland. Our colleague Xabier Villares spoke on behalf of our new collective Migrant Justice Edinburgh and explained the role that the Migrants Observatory plays in connecting frontline gig workers with the Edinburgh Council.
As a migrant-led organisation, we resonated deeply with the idea that migrants should be at the forefront of finding solutions, taking action, and sharing their own knowledge and skills when faced with adversity. Migrants across Scotland have an embodied understanding of our complicated immigration landscape. They understand what it is to be far away from family, trying their best to nurture a new life. They understand not knowing where to turn for help. They understand the complexity of navigating support services when English is not their first language. It is this understanding that brings power for collectively addressing these issues, to ensure everyone can live in dignity.
Though there is no silver bullet for tackling the threats to migrant rights, we know that migrants’ voices and contributions are essential. The conference emphasised that the denial of human rights to any group is a threat to all our human rights.
This is why, at Citizens Rights Project, we pride ourselves on centring our client’s access to lived human rights in everything we do. Our free services ensure that people can access immigration and welfare support in the language that they speak. Our EUSS and e-Visa team ensure everyone can access support when applying for and updating their immigration status. Our welfare team ensure that migrants can access support for financial, housing, and work concerns. Where CRP is unable to support, we link you to the organisation that is best placed to do so, guiding migrants across Scotland to access the support they need. Through these services and relationship-building we are continuously learning how to best advocate for migrants to be active agents in decision-making process.
We believe in creating a Scotland that is filled with opportunities for migrants to build secure, autonomous lives where they can thrive.
If you speak multiple languages, and/or want to find out about volunteering opportunities, you can email info@citizensrightsproject.org .
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