The Portrait Series 2022: International Women’s Day

Jaz O'Hara

Jaz left her job in the fashion industry to start The Worldwide Tribe, a move inspired by the experience of welcoming refugees into her own family. Through her parents fostering efforts, Jaz has four new brothers who arrived to the UK as child refugees. Understanding their drive and experiences first-hand, The Worldwide Tribe is on a mission to highlight the humanity behind these world issues, using original creative storytelling to amplify real voices, inspire global community and drive positive social change.

The theme for this year's IWD is #BreakTheBias. What are the biases you have faced as a woman?

I have four brothers who arrived in the UK as unaccompanied minors when they were between the ages of 12 and 14. They’re from Eritrea, Sudan, Libya, and Afghanistan, and as you can imagine, it makes for very interesting dinner conversation, sometimes regarding topics like gender! It’s great to see a mix of cultures and nationalities come together and discuss the differences in things like the roles of men and women and what gender actually means. My Afghan brother, for example, had never seen a woman drive. And I remember when my Mum first picked him up from school, he asked where my dad was – and he was at home making dinner. His mind was blown! Although we don’t always agree on everything, I think that with respect and love for one another, we’re definitely finding more understanding of these different perspectives.

How do you look to change these perceptions?

I think that the best way to challenge these perceptions is not to actively try and change anyone’s mind or have an agenda – just lead by example and slowly, people can make their minds up from a more informed place. It feeds into what we do at The Worldwide Tribe, sharing stories on a human level to try and unpick some of these narratives that are told.

What is the biggest misconception people might have about the refugee crisis?

I hear a lot of noise that refugees coming to the UK are all men. Yes, there are a lot of young men, but there is little understanding of why. My brothers represent those boys that were fleeing things like compulsory military service or conscription to the Taliban, for example. Although there might be more men in Calais, because crossing from France to the UK is so, so dangerous, there are still huge populations of women and children too. I think 50 percent of the population of refugees in Greece are children. It’s really important to remember that, even if we see images in the media that might lead us to think otherwise.

…just lead by example and slowly, people can make their minds up from a more informed place.”

What personally inspired you to take such a strong stance?

It’s a fun story! I used to work in the fashion industry at an ethical underwear brand called Pants to Poverty, back in the day, when I was fresh out of university. They produced fair trade organic cotton underwear in India. I would spend half the year in India with the cotton farmers and half in the UK – so there’s kind of a little bit of a natural progression! But my pivotal, life changing moment was in 2015, when my mum and dad started going through the process of looking into adoption or fostering another child. My youngest brother, Fin, was turning 18 and they were nervous about not having kids at home anymore. So, they started the long and rigorous process to become foster parents. It soon became clear that there was a big need for families for young people that were arriving to the UK via the Calais Jungle. They were open to taking on an older child, and a child that didn’t speak English, so it looked likely that my new brother or sister would be coming via this route. That’s what took me to Calais for the first time – I really felt like I wanted to know a little bit more about the situation they were coming from. The news was very negative, describing people coming here in swarms like it was an attack of sorts. I remember overhearing some ladies in the queue in front of me for the bank talking about Calais. They were talking about how people were running around with knives and how it was so dangerous. It just didn’t add up to my family’s experience. I wrote about it on Facebook at the time because I was so shocked and overwhelmed by the difference of the reality to the media portrayal and the people I met, with heroic stories of crossing the Mediterranean and the Sahara Desert. It got a huge response with lots and lots of people wanting to help and get involved.

How does your charity seek to help?

At first, we started with the distribution of shoes and clothing and things like that. But I quickly realised that distributing tents and sleeping bags is one thing, but the camp shouldn't be there in the first place. We had to get to the root of the problem. I really believe that happens through education, awareness and storytelling. So, The Worldwide Tribe makes films, content, podcasts, and we give talks and visit schools to promote advocacy and awareness in the UK. We aim to create a seat at the table, for these important voices to be heard. For example, we distributed disposable cameras in the Calais camp so that people can take photos of their situation through their own lens. Our work is about providing a platform for refugees and building a bridge between people who have lived experience of migration and people that are living here in the UK and are disconnected. We still support grassroot groups on the ground with donations and volunteers because we have this lovely, engaged community online, but education and awareness is what needs to happen in order to create a more welcoming and accepting view of this issue.

What challenges do women in particular face as a migrant or refugee?

It actually breaks my heart to think about this answer, because the journeys that people take make them so very vulnerable to exploitation at the hands of smugglers and worse. Women, especially, often face sexual violence – I’ve met young women who have arrived pregnant as a result.

Often these preconceptions come from not having ever met someone with lived experience of this, and so as soon as you do, that’s going to challenge your opinions.”

How has your cause been affected by the pandemic?

In terms of how it's affected us at The Worldwide Tribe, it's been a mixture of ups and downs. There's been some real big positives that have come out of this time. As a result of the lack of travel over the two years, we focussed more locally – and there's such a massive need to be talking about the situation here in the UK. When I started this, I never thought I'd be talking about a refugee camp in the UK, but I've been working with the residents of Napier Barracks – an ex-military barracks that has been repurposed to house asylum seekers that have recently arrived in the UK. The conditions are super, super shocking. So, we've done lots of awareness and advocacy work, creating a podcast about the situation where I spoke to an incredible resident – one of the first residents there from Yemen – who is a poet and wrote beautiful poetry about his experience. Being restricted has opened more opportunities of meeting incredible people and telling a bit of a new story that is closer to home.

What can everyday people do to inform themselves better on the refugee crisis?

Read or listen to the real human stories. My own grandma was a product of her environment, at first it was difficult for her to accept my first little brother. He's Eritrean, and her beliefs have been firm. But hes very, very quickly charmed her into a place of acceptance and understanding. Often these preconceptions come from not having ever met someone with lived experience of this, and so as soon as you do, that's going to challenge your opinions. Prejudice comes from a lack of understanding and a lack of awareness and education. As soon as you meet someone who tells you this life story, you soon realise they deserve exactly the opportunities, freedoms and safety that the rest of us do.

Which women have most inspired you?

My biggest hero is my friend Sara Mardini. Her and her sister, Yusra Mardini, left Syria together where they were keen swimmers growing up. When they crossed the Mediterranean from Turkey to Greece in a boat full of people, the engine failed. They basically got out of the boat and swam the boat to safety in Greece, saving the lives of the rest of the people on that boat. One year later, Yusra Mardini competed in the 2016 Olympics on the refugee team as a swimmer in Rio. But her sister, Sara went back to Lesvos to volunteer after they both got asylum in Germany. She was the first female Syrian to go back, and she worked as a translator, supporting other Syrians and people arriving to the shores of Lesvos, handing out bottles of water, translating for people. Unfortunately, when she was leaving Lesvos, she was arrested and accused of a crazy number of charges, including espionage and people smuggling. They really have made an example of her to try and discourage more people from volunteering and supporting refugees arriving to Europe. She now faces twenty- something years in prison. She's super strong and knows that there's no evidence against her. In the meantime, she's living in this limbo, waiting for her trial. Her outlook on life is a huge inspiration to me. And then I can’t not mention my Mum. She has eight kids now from five different countries, and she very beautifully creates an environment of ultimate acceptance and patience.