Monday, November 21, 2011
No angels
I’ve spent the last month dealing with a particularly frustrating
housing situation.
My Iranian friend (we’ll call him “Sam”), a brother in
Christ, arrived home one evening to find
three extra people living in his one bedroom flat… one of them sleeping in Sam's own bed! Without warning, his housing
provider put another person in his flat, who then subsequently copied the keys
and gave them to five of his friends.
The flat isn’t equipped for two people (let alone six), which is clearly
against the rules the Home Office has set up for hosing asylum seekers: if
shared occupancy, each room must have a door that locks internally and there
must be equal access to all facilities.
When Sam asked his housing provider to explain their decision, they
simply replied along the lines of, “We’ll, we do this all the time, so why are
you complaining?”
Sam’s concern for his safety was multiplied when one of
the new flatmate’s pals started saying threatening things to Sam when they
noticed Christian literature on his desk, deducing that he was a convert. The housing provider seemed totally unconcerned
about this as well. The only thing they
did after Sam expressed concern for his safety was to put a tiny latch and lock
on his cupboard (see the picture below).
If it wasn’t such a frustrating response to a genuine problem, it would
be comical.
This particular housing provider have a bad reputation and
lost much of their contract last year – probably down to issues like this. Unlike all the other housing providers in
Glasgow, they are a profit making business.
So they can pocket extra money by putting as many people in a flat as
they wish, without having to pay for an extra property. They seem to assume that they are safe ground
in this clear breach of the rules because many asylum seekers are too afraid to
speak out – they don’t want to go to the Home Office and complain when a case
is pending, as if this might reflect poorly on their character, that they are
ungrateful for what has been provided.
However, when I contacted the Home Office about this
situation, they were equally (if not more) frustrated about the situation than
I was. They acted swiftly to get the
housing provider to rectify the situation.
Unfortunately, the housing provider dug their heels in and instead of
just moving the offending flatmate, they hired joiners to install a new wall and door in the flat so that Sam could have
his own room. Extra pressure was needed
from the Home Office again to get the housing provider to install a lock on the door.
Sam admits the situation is not ideal, but he is much
happier now that he has a secure room.
He tells me his faith sustained him during this stressful episode and
was thankful for the body of Christ in Glasgow who gave him so much support.
With this situation, a couple of things stuck out to me:
- In our line of work, we seldom view the Home Office as an ally. But in this situation I was impressed by their concern and how they acted to the best of their ability to make things better for Sam. It was a good check on my own cynicism, as I met people in the Home Office who act from genuine concern and want to improve the situation for asylum seekers. I’m guilty of painting with too broad a brush.
- The church is not always known for its unity and love across denominational boundaries. Sam has many Christian links in Glasgow and felt the unified Christ-like love and support of Christians and churches who define themselves differently and are often engaged in debate... it was encouraging to see boundaries transcended and cooperation stemming from concern for a Christian brother in need.
- We often pray that people would know God’s comfort and peace in difficult times. It almost becomes cliché. But Sam experienced (and still experiences) the promises of passages like Philippians 4:6 have a profound and sustaining reality. I was also impressed that while Sam was having so much trouble, he was still bearing witness to Christ in the Iranian community. One Iranian seeker recently told me that Sam is “One of the guys you can really trust.” I thought Sam’s response to difficulty mirrored Paul's perspective in the opening of 2 Corinthians: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all consolation, who consoles us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to console those who are in any affliction with the consolation with which we ourselves are consoled by God. For just as the sufferings of Christ are abundant for us, so also our consolation is abundant through Christ. (Ch1v3-5)
- I believe that God is concerned about justice and how a society treats the vulnerable; this particular housing provider is taking advantage of people in need and profiting from the fact that many of these people are afraid to speak out. I see the authorities are also concerned about this situation and I imagine that this episode (and many others like it) could contribute to a change in housing provision in Glasgow. We continue to pray that we might see the values of the kingdom reflected in how vulnerable people are housed in Glasgow.
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Wow, crazy stuff. I'm sure Sam is so thankful for your friendship, and great job being an advocate for him in his time of need. Hey, you're no longer American (not really) but Happy Thanksgiving anyway! :) - Faith
What? Did someone revoke Paul's citizenship?
LOL, Emma! I don't think so, but he's just this hybrid American/Irish/Scottish/soccer/rugby person. So tell me, are you guys going to be celebrating Thanksgiving?
