A Syrian artist who fled the war-torn country is now delivering arts workshops to teenagers in a local school while she seeks asylum.
Seba Barhoum (39) has been alone as a refugee in Belfast for the last 12 months but is one of many musicians and artists seeking asylum who have been forging vibrant new relationships in Northern Ireland thanks to a ground-breaking programme, funded by the Community Relations Council’s Community Relations / Cultural Diversity Small Grants Scheme.
The Musicians Artists At Risk Resettlement Scheme (MARRS) project was originally set up by the Beyond Skin arts initiative in response to the Afghanistan crisis through collaborative work with the International Campaign for Afghanistan’s Musicians.
But following requests from musicians in asylum seeking and refugee status from other countries, Beyond Skin has now expanded the project to people from many countries wishing to avail of support through music, as well as adults and children wishing to engage in creative activities for mental health, learning English and opportunities to meet other communities.
While in Syria, Seba had been a professor of art and had taught art in school as well as being an artist herself.
“My family dispersed to several countries because of the war. My parents went to Saudi Arabia, and I'm here in Belfast alone, and I have a sister who lives with her husband in a city in England,” she says.
“We left our country because of war, ignorance, oppression, and oppression against women and preventing them from having a decent life within a terrorist mind. We fled for fear of being robbed of our dignity and freedom.”
After escaping Syria, Seba lived in Greek Cyprus for four years and says it was a difficult time because of the racism and humiliation involved in simply getting your daily food to survive.
“Now for 12 months, I’ve lived in Belfast. I don't feel alone, nor a refugee, nor have I received any bad treatment. On the contrary, I feel that I belong to this place for a long time, and people made me feel like I belong as a citizen,” Seba says.
Beyond Skin CEO Darren Ferguson says that after the Afghanistan crisis, the group focused on providing an extra layer of support to musicians and artists coming to our shores, many of whom were living isolated in hotels.
They developed projects that would help musicians and artists to forge connections with their counterparts in Northern Ireland as well as minority ethnic communities here.
One project saw refugee musicians spending an evening with musicians from the Shankill Road Defenders Flute Band, sharing pizzas, playing instruments, and talking about music.
“It was a great opportunity for people to meet others coming to our shores, meet them face to face and get people together to collaborate,” Darren says.
“Through this programme, people seeking asylum are integrating really fast because they’re meeting different communities and getting out of the UK Home Office controlled accommodation and meeting people. That integration just doesn't happen if you’re not meeting people.
“We’re trying to make sure that in that room are people from local communities and from the settled ethnic minority communities meeting people who are seeking asylum to do something creative together. It’s the way it needs to go to deal with people’s fears and stereotypes.”
Seba was living in a hotel in Belfast for around four months before moving into a shared house but had been unable to do any teaching and wasn’t recognised as an artist.
Her contact with Beyond Skin came about through joining the Guitar Club and initiative that is part of MARRS, Darren says.
"We had a wonderful moment when Seba visited Start Together Studios where we had a professional recording session happening,” he says.
“During a break and despite Seba knowing only one chord on the guitar, we gave Seba a chance to be recorded professionally. The producer and engineer treated her no differently than any professional musician and set up microphones and sound and recorded her playing along to other musicians using one chord.
“For me that is the essence of all our work - the message that no matter your abilities or social status you are special.”
Since taking part in MARRS, Seba has begun teaching art in a series of community and school workshops. The most recent was when she led an art workshop at Integrated College Glengormley teaching a number of different techniques to the Welcome Club, a group set up within the school for children who have come to Northern Ireland seeking sanctuary.
“For Seba, it has been a huge confidence boost and good for her mental health. She has been able to leave the refugee label at the door,” Darren says.
Seba says that through Beyond Skin she has had the freedom and opportunity to teach art and been recognised as a professional artist.
“I am practising all my hobbies that I love and with great appreciation from the people here,” she says.
“This Belfast place has made me feel alive. I am grateful for everything in Belfast that has made me move forward towards a free and dignified life. I thank the people here and I thank God for the opportunity he gave me to come here.”
MARRS is making a massive difference in people’s lives, enabling professional musicians and artists to develop and exercise their skills which both helps their mental health and process of integration, Darren says.
“Meanwhile on the flipside from settled communities' lens, it is helping people to recognise people seeking sanctuary by their gifts and skills - not identified by their refugee status - while also using the arts as an inclusive platform for shared learning, creative exchange, trust and relationship building.”
The CRC’s Community Relations / Cultural Diversity Small Grants Scheme provides support to community/voluntary groups throughout Northern Ireland to help develop their capacity to engage in community relations work and supporting the Executive’s commitment to continuing the journey towards a more united and shared society.
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