AntiNote: The following are quotes from people living in the Calais Refugee Camp, aka. the Jungle, between the 2nd-7th October 2015. They have intentionally been left unedited and without provision of further context.
« Welcome to the new city ! »
-A passer-by
« The jungle now is fucked . But Darfur is fucked too much ! »
-Yusef, from Sudan
« My name Hassan . When I go to UK will be Jack .
Now i’m Jack of the jungle ! »
-Hassan, from Iraq . Offering tea.
« You live in free country .
You go to cinema, anybody stop you ? No.
You go to dancing with your girlfriend, anybody stop you ? No.
Iran is not free. We have dictators there. »
-Ali, from Iran .
« I come to Europe for freedom .
Always war in Sudan, too dangerous .
But France is bad, UK better . »
-Brahim, from Sudan
« ISIS killed all my family . I am here because I run »
-Jungle resident from Iraq, name unknown
« No luck tonight, no luck. (…)
We don’t understand why English government don’t let us in .
We have war in Syria. »
-Syrian brothers Abdelaziz,17,and Nader, 20, on their way back to the camp.
« I buried all my family in bin bags with blood on my hands.
They didn’t believe me. They think it’s action movie.
But it’s not action movie, it’s reality !
It’s my life !
(…)
We come a long way to have human rights,
But now I don’t know what is human rights ;
We want animal rights, give us animal rights !
Because animals are treated better than we are. »
-Ahmed, from Syria – interviewed by Irish volunteers
« From tent to tent, from camp to camp,
these are our lives as a Palestinian nation. »
« When I die, bury me in Palestine
and write on my grave :
I am not a refugee anymore . »
-Ahmed, from Palestine – poems
« Where is our life here ? »
-Graffiti on a makeshift shelter, jungle main road.
Source: Workers Solidarity Movement (Ireland)
