32 images Created 17 Sep 2022
Anatomy of welcoming
This work is the outcome of four years of studying the Humanitarian Corridors run by Caritas Italiana, a research lead by Ilaria Schnyder for the University of Notre-Dame (US). So it’s not just a photo work,
the goal was to translate the complexity of many years of observation into concise bytes of text and image, like flashes of light that can illuminate hidden corners, details, and shadows that are difficult to see at first glance. So the texts - something more than the usual captions - are important as much as the images.
What does it mean to accompany someone? Is “integration” always the correct word? What is “culture clash?” Can a person cause harm even when they act in good faith? Does exist the right distance to keep while welcoming another? These are just a few of the many questions that emerge.
The research reflected in this work focuses on Corridors flowing from Ethiopia between 2017 and 2019, and covers a broad swath of geography and time: 45 Catholic dioceses from south to north were monitored (pandemic permitting) over the course of four years.
This is an unusually long timeframe for a research project of this kind, and it has allowed for precious insights into the depth and variety of circumstances and challenges. In fact, the result - even if this study concerns a circumscribed set of beneficiaries, refugees from Eritrea, Somalia, and South Sudan with their particular characteristics and experiences - turned out as an investigation of the depth and complexity of all the contexts of encounter between welcomers and newcomers.
Images and texts by me and my colleague Marida Augusto.
More details at humanlines.org
What does it mean to accompany someone? Is “integration” always the correct word? What is “culture clash?” Can a person cause harm even when they act in good faith? Does exist the right distance to keep while welcoming another? These are just a few of the many questions that emerge.
The research reflected in this work focuses on Corridors flowing from Ethiopia between 2017 and 2019, and covers a broad swath of geography and time: 45 Catholic dioceses from south to north were monitored (pandemic permitting) over the course of four years.
This is an unusually long timeframe for a research project of this kind, and it has allowed for precious insights into the depth and variety of circumstances and challenges. In fact, the result - even if this study concerns a circumscribed set of beneficiaries, refugees from Eritrea, Somalia, and South Sudan with their particular characteristics and experiences - turned out as an investigation of the depth and complexity of all the contexts of encounter between welcomers and newcomers.
Images and texts by me and my colleague Marida Augusto.
More details at humanlines.org
