Join us for the screening of a short film documenting the experiences of Sudanese people seeking asylum in both London and Paris. Zeena Elhassan and the Madaniya collective aim to discuss the meanings of longing and to belonging in an increasingly hostile environment for those who lack documentation. The evening will also explore how the Sudanese diaspora can shed light upon these injustices and enact institutional change.

Zeena Elhassan is a founding member of the Madaniya collective. Born in Abu Dhabi and raised in the UK, she is currently studying an MPhil in the Sociology of Marginality and Exclusion at the University of Cambridge. Her research revolves around experiences of Sudanese asylum seekers in London and Paris, and how they experience and resist an imposed suspension of time as they wait for their documents in these respective hostile environments.

Madaniya are a collective of young Sudanis in London. They formed organically after organising a vigil outside the EU Embassy in July 2019 to commemorate the martyrs of the Sudanese revolution. Madaniya have been organising around building community consciousness and to create more open dialogue among the Sudanese diaspora in the UK by facilitating workshops, forums, talks, screenings and more. By drawing upon connections, ideas and insights on what their role is as the diaspora, Madaniya fosters inclusive platforms.

Image: “On behalf of all those who left to Europe on boats” from the Army HQ occupation, Photograph by Ala Kheir, 2019.