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Globally, around 1 in 3 women have been subjected to physical and / or sexual abuse at least once in their life. That is an estimated staggering 736 million women.  Many women and girls in Lamp Lifeboat Ladder have also experienced violence, either in the country from which they fled, or during their migration. Our program provides survivors with safe housing, health care, acce ...

Today is International Day in Support of Victims of Torture. Many of the participants in Lamp Lifeboat Ladder have survived torture, violence and trauma. To celebrate the power and strength of survivors around the world,  we wanted to share some more excerpts from authors in the writing group, 'Tomorrow's Hope: Modern Creativity Group' about family and ancestors. Frasie I am in ...

We wanted to mark today, World Refugee Day, by sharing some writing and photos on the theme of ancestors and family, from some of the writers in “Tomorrow’s Hope: Modern Creativity Group” Writing Group. Over the next days we will be sharing other samples of this group's writing.  Some of the authors prefer to call the day ‘World Survivor Day’. By Nasrin I found my soul in the d ...

We mark today, World Refugee Day, by sharing some writing and photos on the theme of ancestors and family, from some of the writers in “Tomorrow’s Hope: Modern Creativity Group” Writing Group.  Some of the authors prefer to call the day ‘World Survivor Day’. By Anonymous To describe our own ancestors, and what we see in them in relation to our current life, our ancestors are pe ...

We continue to honor World Refugee Day by sharing writing and photos from writers who are survivors in Lamp Lifeboat Ladder.  By Bibienne My grandmother was a woman - strong, courageous, who raised her daughter alone, who is my mother. It is the same with me. I lived alone with my mother, and I am raising my son alone. Day and night I am always there for him. It's me and my son ...

Growing up with my parents was so much fun and with happiness, I don’t know much about my ancestors. Our father used to take us into our grandmother's kitchen, we would sit by the fire side, roasting corn, and plums while he told us stories about his parents. Our grandfather was a traditionalist. He was respected by many in the village because of the way he loved his people and ...

Here is the final piece of writing from the writers in the “Tomorrow’s Hope: Modern Creativity Group” in honor of World Refugee Day.  By Thege I am the gendarme, or pyrrhocorid, a Hemiptera insect that wears red and black colors. * I am not dangerous neither for the man, nor for the animals. I don't have an unpleasant odor and I don't sting. * I'm not a garden pest either. I do ...

Playwright and activist Catherine Filloux has written a fantastic artist spotlight about Amin Al-Badra, who is a writer, visual artist and participant in Lamp Lifeboat Ladder.  The piece has been published in Brandeis University's Peacebuilding in the Arts newsletter! Catherine works with and facilitates the Tomorrow's Hope: Modern Creativity writing group comprising survivors ...

Today is International Women’s Day, the theme of which this year is ’Embrace Equity’. Several women wanted to share their thoughts about the day and about the power of women and girls with messages to their sisters around the world which we will be sharing in several blog posts! Alham, a young woman from Syria, now in Ontario wrote: “Where do you find the strength?” “We’re wom ...

Fati, a young Afghan-Iranian woman who is now is living in Toronto, said this: ‘I believe that women have changed the world, at least they have changed my world. I was drying up like a plant. They shined on my life like the sun and helped me to grow.’ Thege, a woman now living in Alberta writes this: THE WOMAN 👩 The woman is a being of the female gender. In previous times, she ...