per la versione italiana
Our Story
Refugees Want Parity, Not Charity
My name is Shaza Saker. I am a Syrian Italian living in Rome. I work for the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization.
In March of 2017, with the continued influx of Syrian refugees to Europe as a result of the war in Syria, I finally had enough of feeling sad, frustrated and helpless watching from the sidelines the plight of so many innocent people who were forced to flee their homeland only to face daunting and unknown variables. Rather than wait for the positive change that I was so hopeful would come from somewhere, I decided I wanted to be that change myself.
The way I saw it, the main problem Syrian refugees face when they arrive to Italy, is that despite whatever expertise or skills they bring from their home country, they are at an immediate disadvantage because they lack the key ingredients for integration and the pursuit of gainful income: They don’t speak the language and they don’t have the network of support that would allow them to explore income opportunities. It would take these vulnerable refugees years of language training and remedial skills training to start being productive and economically viable.
And that is when the idea of Hummustown came to me. The best way for these refugees to start earning an honest, dignified income is to allow them to offer the one skill that transcends all boundaries – their delicious Syrian culinary tradition.
What we are fundraising for?
Through this campaign we are fundraising for Euro 75,000 that would allow Hummustown to have its own professional kitchen, office space, meeting room and front of house reception for direct orders. The budget also includes funds to sustain the project with one year of overhead costs.
Thank you
Myself and the entire Hummustown team thank you for your being a part of this worthwhile project!
Thank You!
شكرا
Grazie!