Refugee
‘I always thought that a refugee was in foreign land not me own country.
I live in the North but come from the East
Walk down the road I can’t get any peace
People keep asking me if I’ve come to stay
You live in Central but come from the south
Shop in the shop now open your mouth
What is this in the world for me today
I must be a refugee in me own country
Refugee in me own country
Refugee in me own country
Refugee in me own country
They tell me move on the danger zone
Not the Belham, safe haven
Thought I could blend in easy and settle down
Now that I move I see that I wrong
Negative vibes I get all day long
Some of the people don’t want me around
[Chorus]
Move in with family and with friends
I become the enemy in the end
Out of your house it’s sure hard to feel at home
Move into shelter still feel the squeeze
Verbal abuse bring me to me knees
Think that I’m heading back to the danger zone’
– Extract from Song 'Refugee' by Zunky 'n Dem
A boy plays with a homemade hoop toy in a processing camp. By 1997, most Montserratians were living in shelters. Credit: John McConnico / Shutterstock. Location: Brades. Date: 25/08/1997
Where we were living, it was considered unsafe, I left a number of times, went to my family, then my friends, then they had to go and I thought ‘where am I gonna go now?’, the shelters were there but I personally didn’t want to go there from what I was hearing at the time. I stuck it out for a bit, then I went off to study.
– Montserrat Resident, 2019
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