December 2022.

 

We spoke to Elukchana Vivekananthan, Ayesha Afzaal, and Hanna Makwana about the Warwick Student Action for Refugees (STAR) society.

 

Can you tell us who you are and your role in Warwick STAR?

Elukchana: My name is Elukchana Vivekananthan, and I am STAR’s Co-President for 2022-2023.

Ayesha: Hi! My name is Ayesha and I am a final year Hispanic Studies and History student at Warwick. I am currently the Co-President of Warwick STAR alongside Elukchana.

Hanna: Hi, I’m Hanna and my role within Warwick STAR is campaigns coordinator which means I liaise with the STAR national organisation and talk to my fellow exec about how best we can achieve or help with the campaign goals. A few of the national campaigns running currently are Equal Access, Families Together, These Walls Must Fall, repealing the Nationality and Borders Bill, and Lift the Ban.

 

What is Warwick STAR?

Ayesha: Warwick STAR (Student Action for Refugees) is a university society which aims to spread awareness of refugees and asylum seeker issues and to campaign for refugee rights. We also seek to actively support refugees in our local community through offering weekly volunteering opportunities to students.

Hanna: We do a variety of things on and off campus to support refugees. Mainly, we’re known for our volunteering sessions at local refugee centres: where students help refugees and asylum seekers with conversational English. We also support national campaigns on our campus, we fundraise for a variety of refugee supporting causes, and overall, we simply raise awareness of refugees and asylum seekers on campus!

 

What motivated you to get involved with Warwick STAR?

Elukchana: I was motivated to get involved with Warwick STAR due to my parents’ background as refugees from Sri Lanka. As a member of STAR, I would like to help those that are facing similar situations to my parents and make tangible impacts to make their integration into society smoother. I believe that the plethora of campaigns, Conversation Clubs, and fundraising that STAR organises each year to support refugees is absolutely incredible. It is without a doubt that there’s still a lot to do in regards to the refugee crisis and I sincerely hope that, through STAR, we will continue to tackle the hurdles and challenges experienced by refugees.

Hanna: Personally, I was motivated to join STAR because I felt to help people in any way I can, it also helps to get out of the ‘self-interested university bubble’ (I like to colloquially call it). Also, I want to work hard to change the narrative surrounding refugees that is incredibly hostile thanks to politics and the media (of which is ever increasing) and STAR actively helps change that – even by simply treating refugees and asylum seekers as humans for an obvious start!

Ayesha: During Freshers’ Week, I saw that there were many campaigning societies available for me to join. However, I was interested in getting involved with Warwick STAR in particular, as it was one of the few offering the opportunity to actively volunteer and contribute to the local community. In addition, the STAR team and members were super welcoming and friendly, encouraging me to keep returning for volunteering sessions and other social and campaigning events.

 

What is Warwick STAR currently working on?

Ayesha: What aren’t we working on?!

Beyond running our flagship Conversation Clubs (teaching English to adult refugees), we have just launched our new Youth Clubs, offering students the chance to help young people with their homework, university applications, and English language, as well as to socialise and play games with them.

We have also organised for the human rights theatre group, ice&fire, to come to Warwick at the end of this month to perform and lead their Asylum Monologues workshop, which promises to be a very moving and interactive event.

Hanna: As we speak, we have a Secret Santa in progress where we encourage people to give gifts to us so we can distribute them to the participants of our conversation clubs and spread the Christmas joy.

Other than that, we are always working on raising the awareness of STAR on campus through society collaborations and planning events; also we are always looking at how we can help with STAR national aims.

 

How can other students get involved?

Ayesha: Students can get involved with STAR volunteering sessions, blog writing, and campaigning by emailing us for more details at or keeping up to date with us on social media. Follow us on Instagram @staratwarwick to find out what we are up to, and feel free to message us there to be added to our WhatsApp group chat for more information.

Hanna: Follow us on Instagram and get on our WhatsApp chat – both are regularly updated, and you will not miss anything of what we do. Be it a social coming up, a template to send to your local MP about an issue, a future event gauging of interest poll, or the thrice weekly volunteering session sign-up form. It’s all there. Just keep an eye on us and see if you can join us on anything at all – something is better than nothing! Everyone is welcome, always.

 

Bonus questions

Where is top of your travel bucket list currently?

Elukchana: India - I’ve never been, but would love to experience the culture there!

Ayesha: Colombia, for sure. It was at the top of my list for my year abroad, but Covid-19 restrictions made that a little difficult to achieve. So, now I would like to explore the country as soon as I can – the culture, food, and natural landscapes all look amazing!

What's your favourite book?

Elukchana: I absolutely love thrillers – my favourite book would most definitely have to be ‘Before I Go to Sleep’ by S. J Watson. It’s incredibly chilling and hard to put down once you get started!

Hanna: A heart-breaking question for those who love to read, okay, what if I change the question and do favourite author? So, Elif Shafak is a magician with words, and I have read most of her work. Each book has the perfect balance of politics, culture, love, deception, plot; and you can never predict anything too well with her books either. If you are a university student, try the ‘Three Daughters of Eve’ for a bit of a university student perspective married with all the other great plot points Shafak gives you!

What’s your favourite meal to cook?

Elukchana: Anyone who knows me, knows that I’m a terrible, terrible cook! My favourite meal to cook would a classic student favourite: pasta.

Do you have any pets?

Ayesha: No, but here’s a fun fact about the fish I used to have as pets about 10 years ago. When my family and I returned from holiday we found that one fish, who went by the name of ‘Bob’, had eaten all the other fish. A few days later, Bob died – presumably from cannibalism.

What’s in your travel mug, tea or coffee?

Hanna: Always tea, usually black and two sugars (my dentist loves me of course). But, there is something so truly refreshing about a bittersweet tea at any time of the day.

Are you a starter or dessert person?

Ayesha: Dessert, always dessert. And I don’t think I’ve ever enjoyed a dessert that doesn’t include chocolate.

Hanna: Well, if I am to cheat yet another question technically, I am a three-course-meal type of person (so naturally both). But, if I had to pick, I would go starter as I am a fan of more savoury foods over sweet usually, though my sweet tooth definitely comes out for a warm brownie and ice-cream.