Community is a janus-faced concept - it excludes as it includes. In Cabramatta, improvements in the "quality of life" for some have been bought at the expense of others. Many of the young people who participated in this project felt looked down on, rejected and vulnerable. A handful were homeless, sleeping in garages, stairwells and abandoned buildings.

bovieng, 17 year-old laotian-australian
the community looks down on us
without knowing our true reason for how we live each day

tram, 19 year-old vietnamese-australian
some people in the community think we're low-lifes
capable of nothing
they think we're finished people
that's what they call us - finished people

but it's our community as much as yours
just because some of us use drugs
we are still a part of the community
i care about what happens to this community
because this is where i grew up
and probably it's where my children will grow up

elana, 15 year-old laotian-australian
we are just like anyone else
disabled people need help, so do we
we need support
i'd like to be accepted for who i am
not what i do
i'm not here to harm others
everyone has problems
ours is just a little bit different
if you cut us don't we bleed?

wendy, 21 year-old vietnamese-australian
i think a lot of people judges us because we're out here
it seems like we're not wanted in the community

tram, 19 year-old vietnamese-australian
when i lived in cabramatta and hanged around there every day some people from the community
thought i was part of the brick wall
it was like they didn't see me or didn't want to see me
they just walk past like you are not there
but i was there, i was out there every day

quoc, 25 year-old vietnamese-australian
some people in the community
see us as gangster or trouble-maker
but look at it this way,
in every race there are good and bad peoples
not all of them are drug dealers or criminal
a lot of kids these days
they just want to be tough to make everyone think
they are in some kind of gang
so they don't get bully by other kids
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