Sanam Ahmadzada aims to change the Afghan refugee narrative and give Afghan-Australians a platform to address issues in their community
Sanam and her family fled Afghanistan due to the civil war and political unrest that put them at risk. What was supposed to be a move for a few months, ended with Sanam spending most of her early childhood as a refugee in Pakistan.
After seven years and a long application process, with many family interviews and forms, Sanam and her family were settled in Australia under the Refugee and Humanitarian program.
Like any teenager, Sanam Ahmadzada wanted to be accepted by her peers and to fit into a new school, but she remembers feeling confused, shy and lonely.
“I used to wake up in the night with panic attacks. It was terrifying and confusing; I didn’t know that it wasn’t normal to feel this way.” Experiencing discrimination pushed Sanam to try to change herself to fit in. “I felt like I was living a double life inside and outside of my home. I didn’t talk about my feelings with my family, because I knew they were struggling with their own challenges. My silence took an enormous toll on my mental health.
“Finding good friends along with teachers who accepted, nurtured and guided me made a massive difference to my life in Australia. From being the ‘shy and strange girl’, I managed to finish high school as ‘Graduate of the Year’!
“I continued struggling with my mental health. These feelings only went away when I started accepting my roots and formed a culture and life of my own. Becoming more active in the Afghan Australian community played a massive part in that.”
Sanam’s own experiences and proactive approach to help others saw her start the Afghan Students’ Association (AfSA) at the University of Queensland in 2015.
“I wanted to create a safe and welcoming space where young Afghan Australians could find a sense of belonging, connection to their roots and a source of inspiration,” Sanam said.
For young Afghan Australians and their families, navigating the culture clash was a hot topic.
“Every young person who joined the AfSA group spoke of identity crisis and intergenerational gaps and conflicts caused by the clashing cultures. By setting up AfSA, the students were able to work through their issues and create a network of opportunities for growth and learning in the wider community.
“AfSA allowed us to take control of our narrative and help change the perception of Afghanistan and Afghan people. We were able to work on some amazing programs through AfSA and Afghan Professionals Australia where I served as the Queensland State Coordinator, and later the National Coordinator. Those of us further into our journey or careers could guide and support the younger generation.”
Experiencing how their move to Australia impacted her family and the issues faced by the other refugees sparked Sanam’s interest in refugee health education and advocating for more diversity and inclusion in health and education-related programs.
“Using my privileges and knowledge of public health to contribute to the lives of other people, especially those most disadvantaged, is my passion that continues to drive me. “
Sanam is currently involved in the Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (ED&I) Committees at the University of Queensland, as well as her workplace, Queensland Centre for Mental Health Research (QCMHR). As a member of these committees, Sanam advocates for diversity and inclusion.
“There are many barriers people from diverse backgrounds face when entering the workforce or large institutions. By having representation in these committees, I can voice concerns based on my own experience to ensure that the current and coming generations have a safer and more welcoming environment to study and work in.”
At the University of Queensland, Sanam is also part of the Cultural Inclusion Council who are putting together UQ’s first Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) Inclusion Strategy, as well as working on other initiatives to foster a respectful and safe environment for CALD staff and students.
In 2020, Sanam was asked to join a Refugee Health Advisory Group called the G11. It was set up by the Mater Health Refugee Network with eleven members from different multicultural communities. In her G11 role, Sanam advises and consults on various programs, projects and health-related activities around Queensland.
“The G11 provide a community perspective on initiatives to ensure they are culturally and linguistically responsive. I advocate on behalf of the community, highlight their health needs to service providers and disperse information on many health matters.
“For example, with COVID-19 related information we help with messaging on border restrictions, lockdowns, safety measures and vaccines. We take long and wordy documents and make them more accessible to the refugee communities. This includes creating audio recordings with simplified messages that we can share on community group platforms like WhatsApp and Viber.”
Sanam has worked on several projects with different stakeholders looking at the mental health of CALD communities as a Research Officer at QCMHR. She has started work on her PhD, which is to study mental health stigma in refugee and migrant communities and co-design a mental health promotion program aiming at stigma reduction. Sanam wants to continue to advocate for the health of former refugees and act as a reminder that health, along with other socio-political factors such as language skills, housing, employability and discrimination are all linked together.
“Everything that I do today is not only because of the opportunities that came from settling in Australia, but also because of my upbringing, the challenges I have faced and the guidance and support of my parents and family, mentors and positive influences along the way, my community, and my own hard work.
“It takes a whole village to raise a child and in appreciation of that I strive to lead a life where I can play a part in someone else’s village.”
When reflecting on the theme of Refugee Week, Sanam said,
“I want to see unity amongst all communities in Australia, but that will only come when we acknowledge our privileges, fill gaps in the system and strive towards a fair, equitable, welcoming, and accepting Australian community that caters and respects the needs of all.”