In the current world, the raging flames of war and escalating violent conflicts have crushed many people's originally comfortable and peaceful lives. Before they were forced to flee their homes, they were sewers, clothing store owners, housewives, and so on, and now, their identity is often described only by the word "refugee."
When faced with the suffering of life, do you complain about the injustice of fate, or do you choose to go against the wind?
Faced with unforeseen suffering, they chose to reconcile with fate.
There is such a group of refugee craftsmen, 80% of whom are women, not as weak and helpless as you might think, who are singing with tenacity and restarting a more dignified life with their industrious hands.
Are only dagger weapons powerful?
They use every stitch to resist the suffering of life, and use every thread to re-sew up the broken life.
When these refugee craftsmen are in simple workshops or sitting in the courtyard of their homes, quietly mending and mending, they are wearing worn-out clothes, but their faces are very calm, or full of smiles, and it is impossible to imagine how much suffering and turmoil they have experienced.
Pouch of Unity has a love-free charity store that can be donated and redeemed
"Embroidery is a new life and a new beginning for me. Each stitch gives me a sigh of relief and gives me hope not to give up on life, but to love every moment of life. Amneh, a 62-year-old Syrian widow, was a hair stylist before she was forced to flee Syria, and after arriving in Lebanon, she began learning new embroidery skills to survive. Embroidery not only helped her achieve economic independence, but also eased the sadness of being far away from her homeland, embroidery made her believe that the world is still beautiful. The "Bag of Unity" she co-produced is embroidered with three women standing side by side, which for her, is like a reflection of her and her former sisters, and also represents the strength of women's unity.
Becoming a craftsman allows you to rebuild your life on your own, and this process is healing the battered hearts of refugees.
Can life be rebuilt only through aid?
With their hard work, they have broken the difficulties of life and are no longer abandoned by society.
Fatouma crafts leather jewelry by hand
As a craftsman, I feel confident and independent. I don't feel like a refugee, but an ordinary Citizen of Niger. ”
Fatouma had lost her home and all its finances to violence in the Sahel. Seemingly dispossessed, her only treasure is the exquisite craftsmanship inherited from her ancestors, as a Tuareg woman, known for her handmade leather goods. The profession of craftsman gave her a radiant glow of self-confidence, dispelled the haze of suffering, and rebuilt a new life with her hands.
After becoming a craftsman through the made51 platform, refugee women can effectively participate in the world economic cycle, rather than being abandoned by the world and needing help.
Is it impossible to dream as a refugee?
They can also light up their colorful lives by relying on handicrafts.
These refugees were drowning in a dark life, hovering under pressure and risk, and making handicrafts gave them the courage to regain their dreams. Some refugees are gifted and go further and further down the path of craftsmen, eventually becoming successful entrepreneurs, while others, as mothers, also rely on handicrafts to educate their children, bringing hope for the future of the next generation to change their destiny.
Do you leave your home and have no home?
They used their craftsmanship to inherit the culture and memory of their homeland, and found a new spiritual sustenance.
Although many refugees have hurriedly embarked on the journey of escape, the memories of home and homeland have always been accompanied and firmly engraved in their bones. Some refugee craftsmen integrate their longing for home into a needle and a thread, allowing the textures and patterns full of national customs to recreate those beautiful memories of their homeland. For refugees, making handicrafts may be just a way to survive, but for the world, the culture they inherit is a priceless treasure.
Is it a catastrophe that strikes heaven compromises with fate?
They turn the embroidery thread in their hands into a lifeline, and declare intransigence to adversity with optimism and self-reliance.
War and crisis have robbed the peace and tranquility of the past, and when the embroidery thread in their hands becomes a lifeline, this group of tough refugee women is no longer trapped in exile, but restarts a new life through their hands. Afghan refugee women living in India sewed all kinds of ragdoll dolls out of discarded woolen materials and gave them vibrant adventure stories and characters, giving them new life as if they were saving their own destiny.
Frieda Doll has a love shop that can be donated and redeemed
Becoming a refugee craftsman is not a compromise on life for these refugee women, but a choice of optimism and resilience in a difficult environment.
Today, one-way goodwill has become a two-way love rush, and in China, UNHCR has launched the "No Difficulty with Love" public welfare store, which builds a bridge of goodwill through the elaborate handicrafts of refugee craftsmen, helping tens of thousands of Syrian refugees living in Lebanon and Jordan to live a dignified life.