TRAPSA: from idea to action
Queensland Teachers' Journal, Vol 124 No 2, 15 March 2019, page no. 23
When QTU members floated the idea of forming a special interest group to support the work of our Union on refugees and people seeking asylum at the 2015 State Conference, we could not have anticipated the results.
The Teachers for Refugees and People Seeking Asylum (TRAPSA) special interest group has grown into a network of more than 150 teachers and leaders from schools and TAFEs across the state. TRAPSA has also broken new ground through a partnership with our sister union, the Independent Education Union – Queensland and Northern Territory Branch (IEU-Q&NT), and operates as a jointly promoted entity within both organisations. This enables education union members to cooperate as they consider, advise and act on issues for refugees and people seeking asylum.
As the 2019 State Conference of the QTU approaches, now is a good time to celebrate what has been achieved.
- TRAPSA meets quarterly at the QTU and IEU(Q&NT) offices
- Union members can choose to contribute funds to support worthy causes through a deduction from Union expenses claims – this generates about $2,000 a year from QTU member contributions
- TRAPSA was among the core groups at the vigil for baby Asha at the Lady Cilento Hospital in 2016
- TRAPSA hosted a #BlueforNauru event, rally and “Walk-off” to support the World Vision campaign #KidsOffNauru (2018)
- TRAPSA is represented at various rallies, protests and events to support community campaigns aimed at restoring a humanitarian approach to refugees and people seeking asylum
- TRAPSA promotes the annual Harmony Day celebrations, with special t-shirts produced for teachers and principals as Australia marks the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (21 March every year)
- TRAPSA has a high profile in the Queensland Council of Unions working group Unions for Refugees, which QTU President Kevin Bates chairs
- TRAPSA has been recruited to the United Nations High Commission for Refugees international campaign group #WithRefugees in recognition of its work in Queensland
- TRAPSA has partnered with Doctors for Refugees, Mums for Refugees, Nurses and Midwives for Refugees and Asylum Seekers (NAMRAS) and other community groups, such as the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre and the Romero Centre, to advocate for and support refugees and people seeking asylum in our community
- TRAPSA has brokered a “workplace giving” drive to provide funds for “finally determined” refugees and people seeking asylum in the Logan community who are cut off from all forms of support by the Australian government.
It is QTU members who led this initiative from the beginning. It is teachers and principals, all union members, who drive the activities. The QTU is proud of the work being done to support this group of vulnerable members of our community.
If you would like to know more or would like to join the Teachers for Refugees and People Seeking Asylum special interest group, go to www.qtu.asn.au/trapsa