Hemayat: Award for moving spot about refugees in Vienna!

Hemayat: Award for moving spot about refugees in Vienna!

The TV commercial “Stammtisch” by Hemayat, a care center for torture and war survivors in Favoriten, recently caused a stir. It was named the second best spot of 2025 in Austria. At the Austrian Fundraising Awards, Hemayat was able to take second place in the “Spot of the Year” category with this spot. The spot shows a group of regulars, creates the image of a shared exchange and tilts to make the reality of escape and trauma visible. It becomes clear that these are not abstract statistics, but rather people who have survived war, torture and persecution and are looking for protection and a better life in Europe. Since its founding in 1995, Hemayat has cared for around 22,000 severely traumatized people who have been able to find new perspectives here. meinkreis.at reports that the spot was produced pro bono in collaboration with the Viennese creative agency “Aunt Emma”.

Cecilia Heiss, the managing director of Hemayat, emphasizes the importance of therapeutic support for clients. At the same time, she criticizes the misrepresentation of asylum seekers in political discourse, where they are often perceived as a threat, and highlights the positive contributions of these courageous people.

Increasing need for support

Hemayat felt the need for support in psychosocial care more than ever. In particular, the number of traumatized refugees, including many children and young people from countries such as Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan, has increased significantly. Hemayat not only offers medical, psychiatric and psychotherapeutic help, but also takes care of the special needs of clients with interpreters. But the financing of the aid is in jeopardy. Financial resources are stagnating while needs are growing. A waiting list of 400 people illustrates this problem, as the organization can hardly expand additional capacity for care. volksgruppen.orf.at denounces that many refugees suffer from poor conditions while private helpers try to provide the bare essentials.

The challenges are also reflected in the work of Hemayat's 30 psychotherapists and numerous interpreters. There is an urgent lack of psychotherapy contingents from the Vienna Regional Health Insurance Fund, which means that the poorest refugees in particular are often left without the support they need. Untreated post-traumatic stress disorder can make life difficult not only for those affected, but also for their loved ones. Studies show that unresolved trauma can have serious long-term consequences and that many victims are severely restricted in their everyday lives.

Additional offers for stabilization

Additional initiatives, such as the SINTEM project, offer intercultural psychotherapeutic and psychosocial care for people with a refugee background in Vienna and Lower Austria. SINTEM is aimed at refugees who suffer from the consequences of traumatic experiences and supports them in particular in stabilizing them before and during psychotherapy. The therapists are specially trained in trauma therapy and work closely with experienced language mediators to offer clients the best possible support. The offering includes not only psychotherapy, but also social work and group counseling on specific topics to address the diverse needs of clients. The whole thing is offered free of charge. caritas-wien.at provides information about the extensive range of help available in difficult phases of life.

But without the necessary financial support from public institutions, the valuable work of Hemayat and similar organizations could be at risk. The social responsibility to value and support diversity must continue to come into focus. This is the only way traumatized people can get the help they urgently need.