Hassan Akkad Live Q&A with Joe Wade, Don’t Panic London

Advocacy Learning from Hassan Akkad and Marcus Rashford

On Wednesday 24th June, Don’t Panic’s very own MD, Joe Wade, conducted a fascinating live Q&A with BAFTA-winning filmmaker, front-line NHS hospital cleaner, and Syrian refugee, Hassan Akkad. Talking about his treacherous journey to the UK and stepping up as an NHS volunteer amid the pandemic, we heard first-hand how the power of storytelling through his lived experiences helped change UK attitudes towards refugees, and generated real-world political action.

Hassan arrived in the UK 87 days after fleeing Damascus, Syria. Filming his perilous journey, he wanted to use his experience to challenge preconceptions of those seeking asylum, and show the shocking reality of the lengths people will go to in order to survive. “We’re not fleeing because we’re poor… we’re fleeing because if you’ll stay, you’ll die”. The unfiltered footage gave the refugee crisis a human face, providing the British public with a unique view on the journeys of refugees. It also allowed Hassan to create distance between his emotions and the brutal reality he was living:“on a personal level I filmed because my mental health was in really bad shape…the camera protected me, I would be on a sinking boat or in a van smuggled by the Serbian mafia but because I had my GoPro in front of my face the whole time filming it worked as a shield. It helped me isolate myself from the situation”.The latest remarkable chapter in Akkad’s life started when he decided to volunteer as a cleaner at Whipps Cross Hospital, London, during the Covid-19 pandemic. Of this decision, he said, “I didn't hesitate. [I thought] it’s important, I'll do it… so I went in the next day.” At the height of the crisis, he witnessed a hospital without an empty bed, corridors packed with people and a morgue that was so full, an emergency one had to be opened.Working in a Covid-19 ward for 65 days, he soon learned the job was not only harrowing, but full of harsh injustices as the UK government decided to exclude migrants from the coronavirus bereavement scheme. Akkad made the decision to appeal for change, filming his heartfelt plea to Boris Johnson on his mobile and uploading it to Twitter. “I was given the opportunity of writing or protesting outside No 10… but I appealed to his humanity”. He was unaware, however, of the viral storm he was about to unleash. “The video caused the U-turn and Priti Patel said ‘yeah we're including everyone’. I felt like I'd won the lottery, it was the best feeling ever! I started getting texts from people saying ‘my daughters will be safe if something happens because of you, you helped my family’. I'm very proud of it.”There’s a lot to learn from Hassan’s powerful storytelling and successful advocacy work. We drew some interesting parallels with Marcus Rashford’s recent achievements on campaigning for free school meals.

Authority

Key to both Hassan and Marcus’ appeals was their personal involvement in the cause and the issue. As an NHS cleaner, Hassan was able to talk about the injustice of migrant workers being excluded from the Coronavirus bereavement policy, while Marcus’s account of relying on free school meals growing up gave his government plea authenticity.In collaborating with individuals with lived experiences of a cause, rather than celebrities solely chosen for the size of their following, we can create more authentic and successful campaigns. Hassan believes that the media and INGOs can learn from this authentic approach to storytelling by hiring refugees within the teams that produce content on the issue, from producers through to script-writers, videographers and more: “You should diversify your workforce. Not just on the surface, but on the board”.

Emotion

Both appeals also used emotion to drive interest and action. On uploading his heartfelt message to Twitter, Hassan said “I was given the opportunity of writing or protesting outside No 10… but I appealed to his humanity”. Thinking of the effect his powerful words have had elsewhere, as well as in the UK, brings a smile to his face. “It went so viral in the Middle East. They're so proud of it as I'm a Syrian refugee.”Similarly, Marcus chose to write a letter from the heart, including personal insights about his life growing up, which allowed people to get closer to the issue and understand what other families are going through right now.

Direct but not shouty

Both appeals also addressed Boris Johnson directly, on a human level rather than a critical one, speaking with authority and emotion. Marcus’ campaign gained huge momentum and his open letter had enormous impact on not only the PM but the public as a result of his direct but calm approach. For Hassan, he believes his self-shot video was so effective because it was filmed on a phone: “it was raw. I'm in my NHS uniform and watching it now, I was quite disturbed. I gave context, I addressed Boris, I wasn't shouting. It was coming from someone, not a journo or reporter, but someone whose life is affected by this and working in a hospital filming this on his lunch break.” With a constantly evolving news cycle, Hassan recognises that the government won’t backtrack from every issue on account of public pressure. Instead, he believes that the best thing we can do to create effective change is join a union: “Petitions are great, tweeting and hashtagging is also great, but it’s also about getting everyone involved.”To catch the full recording of the live Q&A between Don’t Panic’s Joe Wade and Hassan Akkad, view it below.

If you want to learn more about the power of storytelling, drop us a line at newbusiness@dontpaniclondon.com