I am a newcomer to the Welfare and Advice Team at the Manna Society and have arrived at a time when a change in Government legislation has caused an increase in the numbers of street homeless particularly amongst those who have recently been granted Refugee status. A significant proportion of the Refugees that I have seen are from war torn East African countries. Many of them have a poor command of the English language and at the Manna Society we do not have a Translation service, which can make interviews very challenging. Notwithstanding, people still assist each other.
I interviewed one chap about his homelessness, his translator was someone whom he had just met in the Servery (eating area) that morning they discovered they spoke the same language and one volunteered to help the other. I genuinely admired that empathy with legs on it!!
I had two appointments with clients whom I will call A and B. A was running very late so I started interviewing B and part way through A rang. He was nearby but couldn’t find the place and because of the language barrier couldn’t tell me what he could see, what the name of the street was or how to spell it. I realized that A and B spoke the same language and B’s command of English was good “Would you mind?” I didn’t have to say anymore. He spoke to A on the Office phone then put the number in his own mobile, gave up part of his interview time with me to go out and look for A who was just down the road. I commended B on this when he returned,” Well he is in need just like me” he replied.
I saw the most impressive example of this self- sacrifice when interviewing a young street homeless refugee who came with someone to translate. The Translator, I learned later, had once been a new arrival to the UK himself and was now well established. He had seen the young homeless refugee on the Street, in the cold, realized they were from the same community and took him in. His own heating was faulty at home, but he thought it was better than leaving this man on the streets. He is a Mini Cab driver and took the day off work to accompany the young man to his homeless interview. It’s good to see that the milk of human kindness in some parts still flows freely amongst those who need it themselves.