Aisha & Bankole Emergency Appeal & Update

[Jacuma]

Date: Tue 09/07/04 06:04 AM
Peace and Blessings everyone

We are willing the best for all of you at this time
with so much change going on in the world.

We trust that all of you are still working to make the
better world. Although it's hard, we can do it!

We wanted to take the time to inform and update you
about an urgent situation, and as usual ask for your
support.

At present we are in Dublin, Ireland and we'd like to
give special thanks to our host and wonderful friend
here, Brian Treacy!

Also: special thanks to Herre de Vries who visited us
from Holland, lifted our spirits and educated us about
some of the political struggles that he is involved
with there. Dank u!!!

Special thanks to Sylvia Villfor who also visited us
from Sweden! As well as Marianne & Lasse Lindberg,
Christopher, Ylva, Naima, Thatsanie, Robert, Anna,
Joakim and all of our friends in Sweden! Your support
and solidarity is indeed a much appreciated beacon of
light for humanity!


Why is this an emergency appeal?...

We mentioned that Herre lifted our spirits as did
Sylvia, and we needed that for a number of reasons.
One is our health. While in Scotland Aisha had an
afternoon at the hospital for a bout with Bronchitis.
She's better now, but experiencing some other
difficulties.

One major problem at the moment is getting our monies
owed for performances from 2 organizations in
Scotland.


World Refugee Day Scandal by: The Scottish Refugee
Council & Scottish Carnival Arts

In May Aisha was asked by Julie Murray of
Scottish Carnival Arts to put together a community
choir which would perform at World Refugee Day in
Glasgow. This was to be the finale for World Refugee
Week, sponsored by The Scottish Refugee Council in
Glasgow.

To make a long story short Scottish Carnival Arts and
The Scottish Refugee Council hired us, as refugees, to
do a show for refugee day in order to
promote the idea that efforts are being made to treat
everyone more fairly. This was done because of the
high-profile, highly published poor and incredibly
inhumane treatment of refugees in Scotland.


Now that the show's over they haven't paid us - the
refugees who put it on to help make them look
good!!!!!

This is scandalous and very racist indeed. And it is
a human rights violation. Julie Murray of Scottish
Carnival Arts (SCA) has never denied that she owes the
money, but each time that she was to meet up with
Aisha she didn't show. Up until the time we left
Scotland, the phone at SCA was malfunctioning and her
mobile phone as well as her landline voicemail boxes
were full, or not available.

We met with Patrick Evans, Refugee Week in Scotland
Co-ordinator for The Scottish
Refugee Council and asked him to collect the monies
from Julie or to have his organisation pay us
directly, as they are the funders and promoters for
the event, which he agreed to do.

Although he had promised to do this in several
e-mails, phone calls and a meeting, he has now pulled
the same disappearing act, and won't return phone
calls or answer e-mails.


In total we are owed 350.00 by SCA.

A total of 200.00 for so-called world refugee day and
150.00 for our last concert. That's a total of about
516.00 euro at today's exchange rate!


Julie had promised funding for our last
workshop/performance and then attempted to back out 2
days before it was to happen. When we went ahead with
the event and invoiced her anyway she sent a racist
madman to disrupt the days events. Amongst other
things she purposely double-booked the space and he
arrived that day shouting at people, cursing and
yelling. It was a disgusting show of racism and drove
the point home to everyone there of just how difficult
it is to present our culture and tell our story in
Scotland.

http://www.geocities.com/exiledone2002/

HERE IS WHAT IS MOST SERIOUS!

Because Julie has not paid, we are now in a situation
where we have no more money to live while we are in
Ireland!!!!!!!!!!!


IT IS MOST URGENT THAT YOU CALL PATRICK EVANS AT THE
SCOTTISH REFUGEE COUNCIL AND ASK HIM TO ASSIST IN THE
MATTER.
We are asking you, our friends, to make your voice
known and demand that The Scottish Refugee Council and
Scottish Carnival Arts pay us what's due so that we
can survive in Ireland and move on to the next
country.

Please direct your calls to:

Patrick Evans
Refugee Week in Scotland Co-ordinator
Scottish Refugee Council

00 44 141 248 9799 (switchboard)
00 44 141 223 7964 (direct line)

or 00 44 7930 369919 (mobile phone)

Make sure that you tell him from what country you are
calling, that you are appalled by the situation, and
tell him to pay us immediately. If you cannot speak
with him directly, leave a message.

Donations...


We must leave Ireland no later than 5 October. Our
visitor's visa expires then. Because SCA has not paid
we have no money to pay for our passage to the next
country and no money to live until October!

What is most urgent is that we also have no more money
left for our daily expenses. This is a very pressing
and stressful situation.

Your help is very much needed!!! If any of you are in
the position to make a donation to make up for the
money that's owed by SCA we would very much appreciate
it!

Of course, you can always shop at the Soulful
Expression as well!!!!

We are now taking orders for the latest CD produced in
Scotland, some which ironically enough was recorded at
Scottish Carnival Arts!

The CD is called "A Soul Sister Speaks from Exile" and
is a double CD live compilation of our tour of the UK
& Ireland. There is also music on the second CD
recorded in Glasgow in the studio which features a
special song called "The Awakening" written by Aisha
but also featuring the voices of people from the
African diaspora and other places including England,
Scotland, Palestine, and the US of course speaking
about their view on the awakening of people's freedom
in the world.

The CD sells for:

18 euro
12.00 (UK)
180:- kr. (Sweden)
$22 (US)
$28 (Canadian)

Please allow 4 weeks for delivery.

Donations & CD orders:

After you have deposited money please e-mail us
to confirm when and how much. Many thanks!

AS THIS IS AN EMERGENCY SITUATION, WESTERN UNION IS
ALSO AN OPTION!! If you want to use this method,
please contact us for details and instructions.

Sweden:

Swedish postgiro:

The number is 1238805-4


The postgiro is under the name Christopher Thorn

Should you need to include his address it's:

Tors v. 17b
75440 Uppsala
Sweden


In Ireland and The UK

You can send a cheque made out to Kate Jones:

Kate Jones
Garnwen
Llanwrtyd Wells
LD5 4ST
Wales
UK

Please enclose a note saying the cheque is for us.

****************************************
In the US & Canada

You can send a cheque made out to Ryan James:

Ryan James
85 Thorncliffe Park Dr. #2410
East York, ON
M4H 1L6

Please enclose a note saying the cheque is for us.
***************************************

Other news and thanks...
********************************

Thanks Tommy Sheridan and the Scottish Socialist Party
(SSP) who helped us during our 6 month stay in
Scotland. Special thanks to Graham Cee!

We would ask that Tommy Sheridan and the SSP do what
it can make a donation as well as ensure that we are
paid what we're due from SCA in Scotland.

We would also like to solicit the help of this and
other organizations to help us SETTLE IN A
COUNTRY!!!!!!!!! This is our greatest need which was
not addressed at all in Scotland.

We must have a country in which to live. Each day in
this situation is more stressful and more difficult.

Special thanks to:

Inma Soto for the Spanish translation of our website
and other solidarity! Brother Jacuma for our presence
on the Talking Drum and the on-line interview of Aisha
and Thandi broadcast on Pacifica Radio in the US on
http://www.thetalkingdrum.com/ Pam Currie, Kath Kyle,
Tommy Sheridan, Sandy Nelson, Ryan and Basel (the
Glasgow-Ramallah Connection) who mastered the 6th CD
on the Soulful Expression "A Soul Sister Speaks from
Exile", Ruzooka, Rosemary & Jerry, Graham Cee, Cathy
Kungu, Paul Riddle, Pauline, Laura in Glasgow, Aisha's
students from The Glasgow Gospel Choir, Jane and the
people at The Annexe, Glasgow Autonomous Project,
Ewan, Lee at Carnival Arts, Jo King, Kate & Geoff in
Wales, Brian in Dublin, Una in Dublin, Bart, Nancy and
Christophe in Belgium, Kenneth, Fanny & Shaka in
France, Ryan and Milo in Canada, Dr. Mutulu Shakur,
Zolo Agona Azania, Obadyah Ben Yisrayl and their
families, Mama Khandi and Sister X, Thandi in LA ,
Frank Dee, Simba in Glasgow and all of our other
friends who are too many to name. We love you and we
thank you for your support in this difficult time.

http://www.geocities.com/exiledone2002/

Aisha & Bankole
Dublin, Eire (Ireland)