Refugees Gather: ​“This Is Now Our Family”

Arabic salad, vegetable biryani, Sudanese white beans, and Afghani qabili palau were passed around Sunday to the beat of African drumming — and the tales of more than 35 refugees from eight countries who are now part of one community in New Haven.

The occasion was a gathering of refugees and community members in East Rock Park to celebrate World Refugee Day.

The event was organized by Kenyan refugee and Ward 2 Democratic Committee Co-Chair Jane Kinity, who advocates for safer conditions in passage to the United States as Connecticut’s delegate to a nonprofit group called Refugee Congress.

For many of the attendees, the event was an opportunity to celebrate the refugee community’s diverse cultural heritage.

“I came to New Haven through IRIS [Integrated Refugee & Immigrant Services] and I appreciated how they connected me within the community,” said Kinity. ​“I want this event to help others in the community so they know we are here to help.”

Kinity said that when she first came to the United States, she faced significant language barriers and had trouble finding work as a result. She trained as a certified nursing assistant, which both improved her English skills and equipped her to translate Swahili for refugees like herself.

Kinity and her daughter Rahab came to the event wearing traditional Kenyan clothing and Maasai. They spoke about fleeing Kenya due to efforts by Jane’s husband — Isaac Newton Kinity — to fight for human rights and American assistance in the country.

“The government burned our house and our documents,” said Rahab Kinity. ​“I choose to help people because my dad also has the heart for helping people.”

Rahab Kinity had to stay in Kenya for longer than her mother due to her fight against cancer in 2014. She fled to Uganda and later the United States with her young daughter and now works at Duke Raleigh Hospital in North Carolina.

In keeping with her background in gospel music, acting, and songwriting, Rahab improvised a song Sunday about refugee unity during the event. She danced alongside three representatives from Sojourn Market, an African holistic health market on 2 Garden St., which provided drum music, tables, and a tent for the event.

“I want our store to be a space for refugees and migrants to carve out a part of the community for themselves,” said Sojourn Market manager Ashley Williams.

According to Sojourn Market founder Tymothee Anderson, the market aims to combat food injustice. It also raises funds for annual retreats and family days for children in the Dwight neighborhood. Kinity said she decided to work with Williams and Anderson because she sees the store as a way to celebrate refugee relationships and heritage in the community.

Those who attended the event had opportunities to build friendships with one another. Although Ragaa Abdall, a refugee who came from Sudan 11 months ago, speaks only a small amount of English, she worldlessly drew henna designs on more than 10 attendeed.

Amal Aldabaan, 12, and her 6‑year-old sister Retaj both received henna designs from Abdall. The siblings brought their two pet rabbits to the park and showed 6‑year-old Yara Alamein, a refugee from Iraq, how to stroke and feed them. Four years ago, the Aldabaan family moved to Jordan and later the United States to flee from the Syrian Civil War.

We are all people leaving from bad things,” said Amal Aldabaan. ​“This day shows that we’re like everyone else.”

Nadal and Abir Zoubi, refugees from Syria, have no extended family in the United States. For them, being around other people who have experienced similar difficulties migrating to a new county turned the event into a family affair.

“This is now our family,” said Abir, gesturing to the group of refugees gathered around hot trays of food made by Syrian refugee Aminah Alsaleh and Sudanese refugee Azhar Ahmed.