Week 6: Identity

Identity: What Does It Mean For Those Who Seek Refuge?

By Kate Orr

Protest art held at a rally against xenophobia in Miami, 2017 (Getty)

Identity. A social construction. It has the potential to be powerful, to be celebrated. Yet this is rarely the case.

I ask myself: why?

Of course, there are a multitude of answers, yet I found that the definition certainly is responsible for this negative interpretation. In the Cambridge Dictionary it is defined as:

“who a person is, or the qualities of a person or group that make them different from others”

This is an interesting definition as I found the use of the word “different” as something that stood out. It demonstrates the incessant need in society to differentiate between people. Whilst this can be positive at times and allow for people to revel in their individuality, it is usually a format of differentiation that stigmatises a certain group. For instance, refugees.

Get Najoom’s stories in your inbox

Join Medium for free to get updates from this writer.

Remember me for faster sign in

Refugee: an identity ascribed to those who seek refuge. More importantly, it is an identity ascribed not by oneself, but by government. It strips away your previous identity, replacing it with the political status as a ‘refugee’. This identity insinuates ‘otherness’ and ‘inferiority’. And it is out of your hands.

“We never chose this situation” by Senait Moges (Ethiopia, 2019). Moges said about her painting: ‘As refugees our lives have become a game of football in Europe. The UN claim to protect us and yet they play the same game. We never chose this situation.’

Once arriving on the land where they seek refuge, many try to assimilate to the new culture they find themselves in — yet however much you try, your true authentic, self-chosen identity will never disintegrate.

This can create an identity crisis.

The fear of not belonging in your new ‘home’, but also having fled your home country can pose all sorts of issues. How can you maintain your old identity when you have to assimilate to a new identity?

The poet JJ Bola has eloquently described this identity crisis: “as a refugee there is only ever half of you in one place; because you have left of you where you have come from, and half of you is rejected where you arrive.”

“Hoping To Survive” by Razieh Gholami (Afghanistan, 2019). Gholami said about her painting: ‘The journey to safety is hard. Europe doesn’t want refugees. We thought we had arrived to safety but Europe is trying to make us struggle more and send us back to danger.’

We must draw away from simply understanding people only through an identity they have not ascribed to themselves, but rather the government has. We must humanise refugees and celebrate their achievements and multiple identities. The idea that assimilation must dissipate your prior identity must change. You can adapt to different cultures, but you must never drown out the things that make up who you are. Identity should be something cherished and something you can freely define for yourself. Refugees are powerful and courageous people, yet the term refugee cannot always do justice to this. We must be more open to the implications of this term and be mindful that those people who seek refuge are much more than just the refugee identity ascribed to them.

About the author

Hi! My name is Kate Orr and I am currently in my second year studying History at Warwick. I am part of the executive team at STAR and have found that STAR is incredible society in raising awareness for the refugee cause. The refugee cause is something that I am extremely passionate about, especially campaigning for and giving a voice to those who are oppressed of fleeing persecution.