Author: Child Migrant Stories

Highlights – 2019

17th February 2019 

Presented Child Migrant Stories and screened “Seeking Sanctuary on a Scottish Island” to a conference “Students for Global Health” at
Kings College Guys Campus, London Bridge. Mainly medical students and doctors were present. One doctor thought it was the Bute film was the best film he had ever seen!

28th February 2019 

Presented Child Migrant Stories and screened “Seeking Sanctuary on a Scottish Island” to a seminar on unaccompanied child migrants at St George’s Hospital, Tooting, London.  This was for medical students and staff. One doctor spoke of the impact of the hostile environment policy on the NHS.

18th March 2019 

We screened ‘Voices Past and Present’, “Child Migrants Welcome?” and “Seeking Sanctuary on a Scottish Island” at Queen Mary University of London. The panel was made up of representatives from STAR (Student Action for Refugees), Safe Passage, Ashvin Devasundaram, film lecturer at QMUL and Duncan Ross (interviewee).

 

21st March 2019

At the Migration Museum Project in Vauxhall, London we launched two new Child Migrants Welcome? films – “I am Well Here” about unaccompanied migrant children in Norwich and “I don’t understand scones” filmed in Sidmouth College (secondary school). These were screened alongside “Child Migrants Welcome?” and “Seeking Sanctuary on a Scottish Island”. The films were followed with a Q&A with Gulwali Passarlay, author of The Lightless Sky, Barbara Winton, Patricia Till from Bute.

4 April 2019 

Eithne talked to Hackney North Labour Party about Child Migrant Stories, Child Migrants Welcome? and the Passage/Lord Dubs campaign for the UK to accept more unaccompanied child migrants. 

30 April 2019 

Eithne gave a presentation at a seminar at QMUL on Welcoming Acts for Hostile Times, using short clips from both audio and films on welcome and non-welcome received by child migrants.  

3 May 2019
Eithne gave a presentation at the Conference on Shifting Frames: Migrant Children, Politics, History” at the University of Potsdam. She also screened “Child Migrants Welcome?”as much of the discussion focussed on age assessment. The key speech was given by Professor Jacqueline Bhabha.

13 June 2019 

We screened “Child Migrants Welcome?” at an event jointly run by Hackney Council and Hackney Museum linked to a campaign to secure more foster parents for young asylum seekers and refugees. 

16 – 23 June 2019  

Hackney Museum used the films and material from Child Migrant Stories for the Refugee Week Schools Programme for the fourth year. Linh and Maurice participated.

16 – 23 June 2019 

Shoreditch Park school in Hackney screened “Ugwumpiti” and the learning material for the Refugee Week School programme. 

June 2019 

Rabbi Gluck and Wendy Pettifer represented Child Migrant Stories on a panel

following the screening of “Child Migrants Welcome?” film at an Enfield Stand Up to Racism event in Dugdale Centre, Enfield. 

23 June 2019 

In cooperation with Norwich International Youth Project we screened “I am Well Here”, “Seeking Sanctuary on a Scottish Island” and “Ugwumpiti” at the Picture House cinema in Norwich. Maurice participated in the discussion and performed at the end of the event.

29 June 2019 

We screened “Passing Tides”, “Voices Past and Present” and “Seeking Sanctuary on a Scottish Island” at the Oxford Arts and Cultural Festival.

1 July 2019 

We screened “Passing Tides”, “Ugwumpiti” and “Seeking Sanctuary on a Scottish Island” at an art gallery for Deal Arts and Cultural Festival. The films were also shown on a reel during the week. Maurice performed after the event. 

 September 29 2019

“Ugwumpiti” was screened at Leytonstone Loves Film Festival.

 Maurice and friends from Phosphorous theatre company were on panel. Organised with the charity Stories and Supper.  

 

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Child Migrant Stories website updates 2019/2020

Our website in currently undergoing a reshuffle to highlight the last 4 years of our films, events, and stories. If you subscribe to receive notifications you may experience an unusual number of emails in the coming months. Everything will return to normal in 2020.

Our first logo concept, created back in 2015.
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The Story of Yazmin Juárez and Her Daughter Mariee

By late 2017, Trump administration officials were discussing targeting migrant families. A memo leaked to major US publications discussed the possibility of targeting parents of migrant families and treating their children as unaccompanied and subsequently transferred to the government’s Department of Health and Human Services custody. 

In early 2018, the news was riddled with images of children who had been apparently mistreated and in some instances photographed in cages causing a stir and an outcry coming mainly from humanitarian organisations, which called the “zero tolerance” policy implemented in the spring of 2018 inhumane and unconscionable.

To tackle the growing criticism that was dominating the front page of major US news outlets, President Donald Trump signed an executive order in June 2018 to end the so-called “zero tolerance” policy. But, despite the action taken, humanitarian advocates and governmental agencies agree that adult migrants continue to be separated from their children for increasingly vague reasons.

In fact, the American Immigration Council reports that 65% of children are still being removed from their parents’ care because of allegations of crime history or gang affiliation. What is important to understand is that these claims and allegations are very difficult to corroborate and therefore there’s no evidence-based justification for these actions.

The Trump administration defended the controversial choice of implementing the “zero tolerance” policy saying that the situation at the border is both a security and humanitarian issue, comments that are perfectly in line with President Trump boastful claims on the 2016 Presidential Election campaign trail of restoring “law and order” in the United States. However, this administration seems oblivious to the trauma that tearing families apart can cause, leading some to speculate that these incentive policies had been implemented to deliberately inflict harm on children to send a strong message to people thinking about coming to the United States to seek asylum. That’s when things got too far, and an already critical situation escalated to something more troubling.

In this climate of uncertainty and fear, at the height of the “zero tolerance” policy craze, we meet Yazmin Juárez, a migrant woman who was reportedly fleeing an abusive situation at home in Guatemala when she decided to step over the border line to enter the US.
Yazmin was carrying with her a little baby girl named Mariee. They were trying to escape a situation in their own home country that Yazmin refers to as “dangerous to their own lives”. They approached the border thinking that that same fear that had driven them to the “land of the free” was finally in the rear-view mirror.
Little did they know that the nightmare had only just begun.

Yazmin and her 19-month-old daughter Mariee were sent to the intermediate step before being admitted to the Texas facility. This intermediate step consisted of sharing a room with 20 people, and there they reportedly spent several days in a room named “la hieliera”, or “the ice box”, a room without comforts. They slept on a cold, concrete floor.

After finally entering the Texas facility and being examined by a nurse who found both Yazmin and her daughter to be “perfectly healthy”, Yazmin started noticing that there were many sick children around her. Yazmin was concerned. One of the kids, who was about the same age as her daughter, was described by Yazmin as “constantly sleepy” and “having a runny nose”. 

Not long after that, Mariee began feeling ill. A few sporadic sneezes and a bad cough, followed by a “runny nose”, were the first red flags. She immediately took her daughter to a physician, despite hearing stories of how the offices were always closed or not properly functional. The physician’s assistant diagnosed Mariee with a respiratory infection, gave her medicine and told her to follow up in six months.

The very next day, Mariee’s condition worsened. She was running a fever, followed by diarrhea and vomiting. Terrified, Yazmin took her back to the clinic. She waited in line for what felt like years. A different physician told her that Mariee was nursing a bad ear infection. She gave her antibiotics. Yazmin left with a strange, sickly feeling in her stomach. She knew something worse was happening. She went back to the clinic several times. Twice she was denied access, the rest of the times she waited in line from dawn until almost dark. That feeling in the pit of her stomach wasn’t gone. In 10 days, Mariee had lost 8% of her body weight, and she was still coughing and vomiting constantly.

After a week, she finally got an appointment with a real doctor. The doctor prescribed her a cocktail of medicines Yazmin had never heard of, but she felt reassured. That aching feeling in her stomach mitigated by a doctor spouting medical terms she had never heard before. Unfortunately, Mariee’s condition was impervious to the doctor’s reassuring words. 

Once out of the detention centre, having got clearance to enter the US, Yazmin found out that in the Texas facility they had declared her daughter as “medically cleared”. She looked at her poor child. She didn’t look medically cleared. Yazmin flew to New Jersey to her mother’s house. On their flight there, Mariee was having difficulties breathing. 

Mariee was taken to a hospital where Yazmin describes seeing her daughter being “poked and prodded” with needles, and eventually strapped to a ventilator to help her breathe. Mariee was surrounded by wires that reminded Yazmin of what she saw when she approached the border and gave her a strong feeling of inaccessibility. She felt incapable of doing the only thing she wanted: touching her daughter, holding her tight just to remind her little angel, and herself at the same time, that “todo estara bien, amor”.

But everything did not turn out fine. Marie succumbed to a collapsed lung from a respiratory infection and died on May 10th, 2018. 

And, along with her, a piece of Yazmin’s heart stopped beating forever. 

 

Nicola Clothier is CEO of Accurity GmbH, a Swiss based employment service provider. Nicola has an Honours degree in English Literature from Stirling University and more than 20 years’ experience in Swiss employment, and personnel leasing up to executive level throughout Europe.

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Highlights of Child Migrant Stories Public Engagement Programme, 2019

17th February 2019

Presented Child Migrant Stories and screened “Seeking Sanctuary on a Scottish Island” to a conference “Students for Global Health” at
Kings College
Guys Campus, London Bridge. Mainly medical students and doctors were present. One doctor thought it was the Bute film was the best film he had ever seen!

28th February 2019

Presented Child Migrant Stories and screened “Seeking Sanctuary on a Scottish Island” to a seminar on unaccompanied child migrants at St George’s Hospital, Tooting, London.  This was for medical students and staff. One doctor spoke of the impact of the hostile environment policy on the NHS.

21st March 2019

At the Migration Museum Project in Vauxhall, London we launched two new Child Migrants Welcome? films – “I am Well Here” about unaccompanied migrant children in Norwich and “I don’t understand scones” filmed in Sidmouth College (secondary school). These were screened alongside “Child Migrants Welcome?” and “Seeking Sanctuary on a Scottish Island”. The films were followed with a Q&A with Gulwali Passarlay, author of The Lightless Sky, Barbara Winton, Patricia Till from Bute.

18th March 2019

We screened ‘Voices Past and Present’, “Child Migrants Welcome?” and “Seeking Sanctuary on a Scottish Island” at Queen Mary University of London. The panel was made up of representatives from STAR (Student Action for Refugees), Safe Passage, Ashvin Devasundaram, film lecturer at QMUL and Duncan Ross (interviewee).

4 April 2019

Eithne talked to Hackney North Labour Party about Child Migrant Stories, Child Migrants Welcome? and the Passage/Lord Dubs campaign for the UK to accept more unaccompanied child migrants.

30 April 2019

Eithne gave a presentation at a seminar at QMUL on Welcoming Acts for Hostile Times, using short clips from both audio and films on welcome and non-welcome received by child migrants.

3 May 2019

Eithne gave a presentation at the Conference on Shifting Frames: Migrant Children, Politics, History” at the University of Potsdam. She also screened “Child Migrants Welcome?”as much of the discussion focussed on age assessment. The key speech was given by Professor Jacqueline Bhabha.

13 June 2019

We screened “Child Migrants Welcome?” at an event jointly run by Hackney Council and Hackney Museum linked to a campaign to secure more foster parents for young asylum seekers and refugees.

16 – 23 June 2019

Hackney Museum used the films and material from Child Migrant Stories for the Refugee Week Schools Programme for the fourth year. Linh and Maurice participated.

16 – 23 June 2019

Shoreditch Park school in Hackney screened “Ugwumpiti” and the learning material for the Refugee Week School programme.

June 2019

Rabbi Gluck and Wendy Pettifer represented Child Migrant Stories on a panel

following the screening of “Child Migrants Welcome?” film at an Enfield Stand Up to Racism event in Dugdale Centre, Enfield.

23 June 2019

In cooperation with Norwich International Youth Project we screened “I am Well Here”, “Seeking Sanctuary on a Scottish Island” and “Ugwumpiti” at the Picture House cinema in Norwich. Maurice participated in the discussion and performed at the end of the event.

29 June 2019

We screened “Passing Tides”, “Voices Past and Present” and “Seeking Sanctuary on a Scottish Island” at the Oxford Arts and Cultural Festival.

1 July 2019

We screened “Passing Tides”, “Ugwumpiti” and “Seeking Sanctuary on a Scottish Island” at an art gallery for Deal Arts and Cultural Festival. The films were also shown on a reel during the week. Maurice performed after the event.

Picture 1z

September 29 2019

“Ugwumpiti” was screened at Leytonstone Loves Film Festival. Maurice and friends from Phosphorous theatre company were on panel. Organised with the charity Stories and Supper.

Picture 2z

Picture 3z

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Highlights of Child Migrant Stories Public Engagement Programme, 2018

11 January to 24 March 2018

Inclusion of “Ugwumpiti” in exhibition “Legacies of Biafra” (50 years after civil war in Nigeria) at the Brunei Gallery. The film was well received. The exhibition will tour to Manchester in 2020.

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12 February 2018

With Hackney Museum presented Child Migrant Stories and “Ugwumpiti” at a national conference on Refugee Week activities coordinated by Counterpoint Arts. Maurice performed music to the whole conference at the end of the day. Our participation led to an invitation to Refugee Week, Scotland in May 2018.

February 2018

Eithne and Mitch presented the work of “Child Migrant Stories” and screened “Passing Tides” at Queen Mary University of London. This followed a performance of original opera music inspired by the global crisis.

Picture 3c

13 May 2018

We adapted the interactive display and quiz on education from Ragged School Museum for use at QMUL Festival for Communities. It worked a treat. Atin Wickham who wrote and designed out learning materials and the installation/quiz helped out on the day as did Shaira Begum, our outreach officer.

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Picture 3f30 May

30 May 2018

We screened “Home” and “The House that is not There” at a Museum Late on Home at the Science Museum in South Kensington.

12 June 2018

There was a pre-launch of the film “Seeking Sanctuary on a Scottish Island” to teachers, Syrian families and children of Bute Rothesay Primary School. We were not in attendance but it was important to get their approval before the film was screened in Glasgow.

15 June 2018

We launched “Seeking Sanctuary on a Scottish Island” about Syrian children on Bute with “Home”, “The House that is not There” and “Ugwumpiti” at the Transmission Art Gallery, Glasgow as part of Refugee Week. Maurice went onto perform music at the festival the following day. He is always popular with the kids.

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18 – 22 June 2018

Hackney Museum continues to use Child Migrant Stories as part of Refugee Week Schools’ programme. The Museum now directly employs Linh, Maurice and others to help run the sessions.

21 June 2018

Eithne presented key findings on her research and screened both “Voices Past and Present” & “Seeking Sanctuary on a Scottish Island” at the “Children and Youth on the Move” History of Childhood Conference held at the University of Greenwich.

24 October 2018

We launched “Child Migrants Welcome?” as well as screened “Home” and “Seeking Sanctuary on a Scottish Island”, followed by Q&As to support Lord Dubs’ campaign for Hackney Council to take more unaccompanied minors in Sutton House, Hackney.

This was in association with Safe Passage who campaigns for legal routes for unaccompanied migrant children to reach the UK. The panel of speakers included Rabbi Gluck and Wendy Pettifer who feature in “Child Migrants Welcome?” and Pat Till who teaches Syrian children on the Isle of Bute.

31 October 2018

We launched 5 x 3 minute films in a picture portrait installation above a fireplace in the Migration Museum Projects’ exhibition “Room to Breathe”. Also included in the exhibition were Argun’s photo album and quotes about education in the exhibition’s school classroom.

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31 October 2108

Following the event at Sutton House Child Migrant Stories participated in the deputation to Hackney Council to take in more unaccompanied minors. Doha, a 15 year old Syrian refugee living in Hackney addressed the council meeting.Hackney Council agreed to take in 3 unaccompanied minors a year over 10 years.

Picture 3o

16 November 2018

Worcestershire Safe Passage campaign screened the “Home” film to support the campaign for the local borough to accept more unaccompanied migrant children.

30 November 2018

Eithne gave a presentation on key findings of her research and screened both’ Seeking Sanctuary on a Scottish Island” and “Ugwumpiti” at a conference on “Working with Young Refugees and Asylum Seekers” Association of Child Psychotherapists.

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Michal – #ChildMigrantsWelcome submission

After Poland joined the EU Michal migrated with his family from an industrial city in Silesia, Poland to a rural village in Northern Ireland. Michal was 14 and at first fought against his parents’ decision but now realises it was beneficial. Miss Brennan a teacher at an integrated Protestant and Catholic school was key in supporting Michal to get to university in London. He now works in Public Events at QMUL. He feels sorry for Britain leaving Europe. He may have to leave but will retain his European passport. Listen to his eloquent story here and listen out for that northern Irish lilt.

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