RACS - Refugee Advice and Casework Service

02/09/2026

We're excited to share that talented Australian writer and broadcaster Benjamin Law will be joining us as MC for our upcoming conversation, "Who Gets to Belong? Culture, Rights and a Fairer Australia".

Benjamin is a passionate advocate for diversity and inclusion, known for his engaging conversations, genuine warmth and great sense of humour. He has a wonderful ability to make conversations feel both thoughtful and accessible, while bringing his own unique energy to the stage.

As a journalist, interviewer and storyteller, Benjamin has become one of Australia’s distinctive voices on culture, identity and community. We’re looking forward to having him guide the conversation and bring his perspective and personality to the evening.

"Who Gets to Belong? Culture, Rights and a Fairer Australia"
Monday 21 September
6:30pm-8pm (bar opens 5.30pm)
Belvoir St Theatre, Sydney

If you would like to join Benjamin for this event, you can reserve your ticket here: https://events.humanitix.com/who-gets-to-belong

01/09/2026

What we've been listening to ...

Dolly Parton's cover of Woody Guthrie's 'Deportee' is well worth a listen. Just have a look at these lyrics:

The crops are all in and the peaches are rotting
The oranges are piled in their creosote dumps
You're flying them back to the Mexican border
To pay all their money to wade back again

Goodbye to my Juan, goodbye Rosalita
Adios mis amigos, Jesus and Maria
You won't have a name when you ride the big airplane
All they will call you will be deportee

Some of us are illegal and some of us are not wanted
Our work contract's out and we have to move on
But it's 600 miles to that Mexican border
They chase us like outlaws, like rustlers, like thieves

Goodbye to my Juan, goodbye Rosalita
Adios mis amigos, Jesus and Maria
You won't have a name when you ride the big airplane
All they will call you will be deportee

My father's own father, waded that river
They took all the money he made in his life
My brothers and sister come work the fruit trees
They rode the truck til' they took down and died

The airplane caught fire over Los Gatos canyon
A fireball of lightning that shook all our hills
Who are these dear friends all scattered like dry leaves
The radio said they were just deportees

Goodbye to my Juan, goodbye Rosalita
Adios mis amigos, Jesus and Maria
You won't have a name when you ride the big airplane
All they will call you will be deportee
No, all they will call you will be deportee
All they will call you will be deportee

Provided to YouTube by RCA Records LabelDeportee (Plane Wreck at ...

31/08/2026

RACS's Sarah Dale joined Chief Executive of the Australian Human Rights Commission Leanne Smith, CEO of the National Justice Project George Newhouse and Marrickville Legal Centre Deputy CEO Tu Le for Sydney Uni Law Society's Human Rights Panel!

She spoke to students about her experience working for and with refugees and the importance of working in the human rights space at this time.

It's always encouraging to see interest in human rights from the next generation of lawyers🧡 RACS is proud to count many passionate and skilled young lawyers among our staff!

29/08/2026

RACS is looking for an Events & Fundraising Support Officer to join our team. This role will support a range of events and community fundraising (peer-to-peer) initiatives.

You will:
🔸Assist in the organisation of events, through researching and liaising with cost-effective suppliers and potential partners, and compiling guest lists and segments
🔸Coordinate on-the-day setup and pack-down, and provide support during events
🔸Perform administrative tasks, including responding to guest enquiries, meeting minutes, post-event reports and follow-up, and market/partnership research
🔸Set up and monitor a community fundraising event, including digital platform and promotional content, handling participant and donor enquiries, and assisting with social media content during the fundraising period

This is a 0.6 FTE contract to April 2027. See the job description and apply by 10 September 2026: https://www.ethicaljobs.com.au/members/RACS/events-and-fundraising-support-officer

27/08/2026

There have been conflicting reports on potential cuts to Australia’s humanitarian intake.

RACS’s message has been consistent over the years. Now, as always, we affirm that the humanitarian program must reflect the generosity and compassion of the Australia we know.

It must protect refugees from harm, and it must ensure pathways for families to reunite in safety.

25/08/2026

You're invited to Who Gets to Belong: an evening with writer and broadcaster Benjamin Law, refugee advocate Shabnam Safa OAM, Plate It Forward founder Shaun Christie-David and Walkley award-winner Sarah Malik.

They'll be exploring:
🔸What belonging means in Australia today,
🔸How our understanding of identity and community is shaped, and
🔸What we really mean when we talk about Australian values

WHEN: Monday 21 September, 5.30-8pm (conversation starts 6.30pm)
WHERE: Belvoir St Theatre, Surry Hills

Register for the night: events.humanitix.com/who-gets-to-belong

Thank you to Belvoir St Theatre for collaborating with us on this event.

24/08/2026

How can we talk about refugees with our kids and grandkids? With the help of books, of course!

Here are our recommendations as Children's Book Week begins:

🔸The Journey by Francesca Sanna
🔸My Name Is Not Refugee by Kate Milner
🔸What Is a Refugee? by Elise Gravel
🔸The Boy at the Back of the Class by Onjali Q. Rauf
🔸Sea Prayer by Khaled Hosseini
🔸When Michael met Mina by Randa Abdel-Fattah

19/08/2026

Here's former RACS client Nargis talking about her long journey of reuniting with her husband. As we mark five years since the Fall of Kabul, we must not forget that so many refugees still remain separated from their loved ones - and that the Afghanistan crisis is far from over.

18/08/2026

Let's keep the pressure on. The Government's planned migration changes would strip people seeking asylum of their right to work and appeal their protection cases. They will not "fix" the immigration system.

There's still time to make your voice heard:
1. Phone or email your MP
2. Read and share the joint letter: https://loom.ly/uLQ59NI

14/08/2026

It's been 5 years since Afghanistan fell to the Taliban - a crisis that continues to this day.

Zaki Haidari fled Afghanistan as a member of the persecuted Hazara ethnic minority. Now, he is a refugee advocate and RACS Ambassador. Here are his thoughts:

"Five years after the Taliban took control of Afghanistan, women and girls continue to be systematically denied their fundamental human rights. They have been excluded from education and employment and erased from public life.

Meanwhile human rights defenders and ethnic and religious minorities continue to face persecution.

"We call on the Australian government to show international leadership: support meaningful accountability for the Taliban's human rights violations and advocate for the recognition of gender apartheid under international law.

We're also calling on the Australian government to continue providing protection for refugees from Afghanistan who are at risk of persecution, particularly women and girls, human rights defenders and persecuted minorities."