Aziz pictured with Suzanne Lee, artistic director at All Change

A REFUGEE who fled to Islington from Sudan five years ago has spoken of how poetry “gave him a voice” as he dealt with the trauma of war.

Abdelaziz – known as Aziz – took up writing when he arrived in the UK and has now won poetry competitions. He has even been invited to the Town Hall to perform one of his compositions, I Still Rise From the Fire, which reflects on his upbringing in the north African country.

When Aziz first came to the UK in 2021, he was housed near Old Street. Soon after arriving, Aziz was approached by Islington charity All Change, who offered him the opportunity to take part in their weekly creative writing and performance sessions for potentially isolated Islington community members.

Islington is an official “Borough of Sanctuary”, part of a network of councils that seek to promote inclusion and community to foster a welcoming environment for those seeking safety.

Aziz said that when first came to the UK, he was seeing a doctor regularly to get mental health support due to what he had seen in the war back home in Darfur. He added that while it remains difficult to talk about what he went through, he has found a voice through poetry, which allows him to tell his story and express difficult emotions from his journey.

Aziz wrote his poem I Still Rise From the Fire last year, formed from taking part in All Change’s weekly poetry sessions. The poem references difficult themes from Aziz’s upbringing and the war back home in Sudan, but also aspirations of hope and freedom moving forward.

An excerpt from the poem reads: “War tried to silence me. But I found my voice. Now I live far from home, but my heart still remembers. Freedom is heavy, yet I carry it with pride. Because even far from home, I still rise.”

In November, he performed it at an open-mic poetry night in Caledonian Road, which he won. Following this performance, Suzanne Lee, who is the artistic director at All Change, said invitations to perform it across the borough have been “flowing”.

He performed the poem once again at a “Borough of Sanctuary” celebration event at the Union Chapel. Since then, he has taken a personal call from the Town Hall, who have invited him to perform it again at a council event.

Speaking to the Tribune, Aziz said: “Writing the poem, I just decided to think about everything in my life, and write it down over two pages. My life in Sudan was difficult. Over a week, I organised all my thoughts and made it shorter, and changed some of the words and experiences.

“It’s better for me to share my story and to talk about things like this, to express some difficult emotions but in a creative way.

“I didn’t have any idea about poetry or writing poems, but I really tried. When it was done, I went to the open-mic night in Caledonian Road to perform it, and there were about 12 people sharing their poems. I was really surprised when I won.”

Aziz is currently studying for his English and maths GCSEs, and loves to play football alongside his studies and poetry writing. He dreams of one day either being a professional poet or footballer, or perhaps both. Ms Lee, who has been working with Aziz over the last three years, said: “We do our weekly sessions where we come together and work on different creative forms with the group. A huge part of it is about building community.

“Whether it’s through performance, or exhibitions, we’re all about giving voice to people who may not usually be heard and creating a joyful and nourishing experience. Through the Boroughs of Sanctuary programme, places like Islington are committing to being welcoming places for people who want to call it home, and that’s really exciting.”