Summary

Better Life tells a twinned narrative of two struggles of service and citizenship. The audio captures the story of Birendra M., a Nepalese man who served in the First Gulf War in a special division of the British army called the Gurkhas. This special unit has been active since 1857, but only recently have these soldiers been allowed to live in or even visit the United Kingdom. As we listen to his story, we see a social housing complex named after James Hammett, a union organizer in 19thcentury England who was expatriated to Australia because of his work to improve conditions for farmers.