the idea for the UNSETTLED TEXT PROJECT arose out of a relationship amongst a few friends and a refugee family in dallas, TX. after coming to understand many of the struggles and challenges this family faced, these friends realized that one of the largest challenges for the family was the relative shift in social status.
the husband and father of three boys, once a journalist and owner of a publishing house in his country of origin, and the wife, once an engineer and teacher, found themselves resorting to hourly-wage jobs in a historically bad job market. an effort was begun to help the husband start writing and publishing again--which he had not done for over a year because of social and language barriers.
because of the energy and vibrancy of this refugee family and the impact their friendship had on a few neighbors, justin banta started the UNSETTLED TEXT PROJECT in june, 2010, a pilot program designed to test the feasibility of bringing together refugees interested in writing and publishing their stories and volunteer editors and translators who would work with these refugees.
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