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A collaboration between the Justice and Arts Network and The Refugee Art Project, the Cross Border Collective, and The Refugee Action Coalitionm, and supported by ICE & Matta Media, Villawood: Survival+Resistance was officially opened on Thursday 8th September at the Information and Cultural Exchange in Parramatta and will continue over the course of the month until 29th September (Monday-Friday 10am-4pm).

The exhibition showcases artworks, film, talks, hip hop, music, poetry, performance art about the Villawood Detention Centre and what it means for Western Sydney in a bid to counter the recent negative portrayal of asylum seekers in mainstream media.

Opening night events included:

An art exhibition by detainees inside detention.

‘Villawood Mums’: A short film screening followed by Q&A with the film makers.

Refugee Action Coalition spokesperson Ian Rintoul discussing the current problems of Immigration Detention.

Performances by poets and hip hop artists from the Auburn Community Development Poets Group, including Rima aka Soul Beats, L-Fresh, and Bhagavadas Sriskanthadas & Nashaa Hamody Abdul-Hassan from the Aurban Poets and Writers Group.

For the Community(’s Youth) by the Community(’s Youth)

JAAN’s inception is based on the premise that given a voice, the youth must and will feel empowered and confident in their ability be part of the solution, all towards benefiting them as individuals and towards the community as a whole. JAAN aims to develop, establish and promote a wide range of essential and innovative grassroots activities and services to address the needs, rights and entitlements that are designed to get people involved in creating a community that is socially, economically and environmentally sustainable.

What’s in a Name?

The letters come together to spell out the acronym JAAN, which actually means ‘Dear’ or ‘heart’ in several languages including Turkish, Urdu, Hindi and Persian. This encompasses ideas surrounding the community involvement in both Social Justice and Arts activities, our inspiration in this case stemming from the heart. The naming and logo associated with JAAN intends to connect the symbolism of the heart and spirit with action and expression.

Vision + Commitment

• To provide positive outlets and opportunities for the youth in both justice and the arts
• To help build and empower the youth to develop their own voices, practices and infrastructures that are socially, economically and culturally active and engaged, contributing to overall positive change
• To help address shared concerns, facilitate and encourage meaningful dialogue, and enable critical thinking of complex issues the youth face
• To work ethically from a strong governance foundation
• To build and be involved in a community of strong networks that reinforces sustainable partnerships across governmental and non-governmental sectors, together supporting the people in the community
• Motivate, create and foster new and existing youth-led projects with similar aims and outcomes

Hosted by Mission of Hope in an effort to recognise 16 individuals for their tireless efforts in the community, the much-anticipated AMAAs were held on Saturday 17th December 2011 at the University of Melbourne. Mission of Hope President, Hanan Dover said that the Awards are instrumental in raising the profile of Australian Muslims, both at an individual and organisational level and promoting their achievements.
“These Awards celebrate the important role that Australian Muslims have played in Australia’s past and present and will continue to play in the future.”

Dr Joanne McKeown - Australian Muslim Woman of the Year

In their sixth year running and sponsored by National Centre of Excellence for Islamic Studies Australia, the AMAAs are more than just a celebration of the ‘who’s who’ in the Muslim Community. The AMAAs also recognised the efforts of non-Muslims who have helped foster mutual respect and understanding by awarding Jewish Rabbi and National Director of Together for Humanity, Rabbi Zalman Kastel, the prestigious Abyssinian Award.

Amongst the 16 celebrated award categories announced at the ceremony, the most anticipated categories included ‘AMAA Woman of the Year’, awarded to Dr. Joanne McKeown and the ‘Australian Muslim Lifetime Achiever Award’, awarded to community leader and founder of the Multicultural Eid Festival and Fair (MEFF), Dr. Qazi Ashfaq Ahmad.

Lawyer and author Randa Abdel-Fattah was thrilled to be named Winner of ‘Role Model of the Year’.
“I hope I’ll always have the humility not to seek to be a role model and the wisdom to behave as one,” she said as she accepted her award for the event.

Moustafa Fahour - Australian Muslim Man of the Year and Australian Muslim Volunteer of the Year

Moustafa Fahour, co-founder of the Islamic Museum of Australia and prominent business figure, was awarded the prestigious Man of the Year award, as well as Volunteer of the Year.

WINNERS for 2011

Winners of the 2011 AMAAs

Awards:

Best new community project of the year – Islamic Museum of Australia (VIC)

Business of the Year – Crescent Times Newspaper (WA)

Media Outlet of the Year – MuslimVillage.com (NSW)

Sportsperson of the Year – Walid Yassine (NSW)

Community Organisation Award – Islamic Museum of Australia (NSW)

Professional of the Year Award – Dr Bulent (Hass) Dellal (VIC)

Dr Bulent Hass Dellal - Professional of the Year and Australian Muslim Researcher of the Year

Abyssinian Award – Rabbi Zalman Kastel (NSW)

Role Model of the Year Award – Randa Abdel-Fattah (NSW)

Creative Artist of the Year Award – Peter Gould (NSW)

Researcher of the Year – Dr Bulent (Hass) Dellal (VIC)

Event of the Year Award – Auburn Community Development Network- Ramadan Iftar Program 2011 (NSW)

Volunteer of the Year Award – Moustafa Fahour (VIC)

Youth of the Year Award – Amna Karra-Hassan (NSW)

Man of the Year Award – Moustafa Fahour (VIC)

Woman of the Year Award – Dr Joanna McKeown (WA)

Lifetime Achievement Award – Dr. Qazi Ashfaq Ahmad (NSW)

Comedian & Entertainer Extraordinaire, Khaled Khalafalla

MoH’s aim is to create a health and community development service that caters to the unique culturally-sensitive needs of the Australian Muslim population. It was developed, and is currently managed by Australian Muslim professionals who are dedicated to increasing harmony in a culturally diverse community through health and community development initiaitves.