Five thousand kilometres. Eight days. This is how long it took for us to travel throughout Italy and follow the steps of volunteers and missionaries, who willingly help refugees and attempt to make sure their basic human rights are being met on daily basis. Approaching new people set off a chain reaction which resulted in meeting real visionaries.

Tony

Tony is an independent missionary. When asked if he could remember a situation in which he felt the certainty of being in the right place, tears began to stream down his face. He told us about the cases where his prayer helped to heal and relieve a few refugees from pain. In that very moment, he was sharing an indescribable joy with them, realising that through him, God was changing lives.

When we walked through Ragusa’s streets by Tony’s side, we met a group of young refugees. They all came out to greet us and all of them hugged Tony, bright smile on their faces and sparkling hopeful eyes. This is Tony’s role in Ragusa - a brother, perhaps even a father, with whom everyone feels safe and sound.

Noah

Many of those on the move want to contribute to society, finish their education, establish successful careers and even start a family. An example of this is Noah, who has also been through hell in Libya and yet, he works very had on his dream of becoming a publicly known Visual Designer. Thanks to the Refugee Center which helped him validate his studies in Nigeria, he has been accepted to the University of Rome. Besides the studies, he shares his work on Instagram where he’s already built a community with more than sixteen thousand followers.

Giacinto

One of the strongest moments of the trip was listening to Giacinto’s story, fascinated by his modesty, values and beliefs as not many people would choose the same path with a similar profession. Giacinto has been into human rights since he was thirteen years old. As a lawyer, he could work in a corporate world, make loads of money and yet he decided to stay in Italy and work with refugees regardless of the financial compensation.

Raphael

One of the teenage refugees, for whom Tony is like a brother. Despite all the horror he has seen and been through, he remained full of life and anticipation of what tomorrow brings. The very next day we talked to him, Raphael took a bus to Milan. Another new beginning was awaiting him there.

Alice

Alice is a lawyer from Palermo, showed us a new perspective on how to perceive the whole situation: “We should consider each refugee as an individual with a story, with a name, family and life experiences. Once we refer to them as a mass, we start losing empathy and interest, unable to connect with them humanely. He or she can be our friend. We should remember this whenever we talk about refugees.”

Ciera

Ciera connects the most intense feelings of hope with the genuine laughter she shared with her new friends. She laughed and played around with them, even despite the dreadful events they had to go through in order to reach safety in Europe. Ciera came to Ragusa all the way from America, just to become a part of the volunteer program. Here, she has

a chance to make an impact and influence the refugees’ lives with the power of love and friendship. Ironically, she can be considered a migrant as well.

Francesco

Missionary and the head of the Open House Center in Ragusa, Italy, where he organizes integration workshops, language courses and leisure activities. According to his words, Francesco was guided to follow this path by God himself many years ago. It was the Lord who sent him off to Egypt so he could learn the Arabic language. Now thanks to his will, he is able to communicate with many refugees in their native language.

“Managing the Open House is not always easy. It is an emotionally exhausting job that often goes unnoticed, but I know I am in the right place. God has called me to be here, to be close to the refugees. ” To experience his determination made us feel humbled. Fran- cesco has become a role model for us. His persistence and awareness remained constant, independent of the instantaneous outcome; with the belief that sooner or later, the work he’s put in will serve a greater good.

The migration crisis has been portrayed in the media so many times and processed in so many ways that it only caused a greater gap for understanding and empathy. That is why Visual Narrative aimed to bring a fresh and more relatable perspective on the topic, told through the eyes of ordinary people, people like us, who devote their time and energy to helping refugees in need.

“The volunteers taught us that we need to learn to give each other chances. It’s easier to think of refugees as a mass and throw them into one labelled bag instead of treating them individually and equally.” Viktor told me that this topic was always close to him ever since the crisis began and believed that Europeans are excessively afraid. This dominates in the Czech Republic especially, where even some members of Viktor’s family feel this way, despite never meeting a single refugee in person. That is just one of the reasons Visual Narrative searched for opportunities that would enable them to display the crisis in a different light. Then, a set of events put in motion eventually let them start this project and so in July 2018, they took a road trip to Italy. Completely spontaneous, they had to figure out the next moves on the go and having only one contact on one missionary did not guarantee any success.

Five thousand kilometres. Eight days. This is how long it took for Nora and Viktor to travel throughout Italy and follow the steps of volunteers and missionaries, who willingly help refugees and attempt to make sure their basic human rights are being met on a daily basis. Approaching new people set off a chain reaction which resulted in meeting real visionaries. Nora and Viktor listened to their life stories and to the unbelievable circumstances that often led them to be in this place, determined to help regardless of the non-existent financial reward and sometimes even gratitude. They captured their faces, reminding us that there are people, who regard refugees as their friends. Ten portraits. Seven volunteers. Three refugees. Before the photographs were taken, they were asked to think about a time they felt absolutely fulfilled and certain in what they do.

Being a volunteer is not easy. It can be emotionally draining, energy consuming and also unappreciated. For instance, Francesco leads an organisation offering an integration program, where refugees are free to take Italian, English or even sewing lectures. Nevertheless, his struggle involves the short-term perspective of the classes as he is unable to truly see the progress and growth he hopes to create. Refugees come and go and in most cases, they do not want to settle in Italy. As he stated himself, “The refugees don’t often appreciate the work so if I didn’t have a word from God, I would not stay for long.”

Some of them often experience difficulties getting used to a new culture and may even display behavioural problems due to the unthinkable trauma. Needless to say, most migrants came to Italy with a vision of building their future. They want to contribute to society, finish their education, establish successful careers and even start a family. An example of this is Noah, who has also been through hell in Libya and yet, he works very had on his dream of becoming a publicly known Visual Designer. Thanks to the Refugee Center which helped him validate his studies in Nigeria, he has been accepted to the University of Rome. Besides the studies, he shares his work on Instagram where he’s already built a community with more than sixteen thousand followers.

When Viktor and Nora met Alice, she introduced them to Refugees Welcome (NGO), an organisation that enables refugees to live with Italian families. It has been already seven years since Alice heard about the crisis and as a lawyer, she instantly knew this is what she needed to do. So far she has worked on more than five hundred cases where she helped refugees to better comprehend the communication manners that are necessary to demonstrate in front of a commission. Due to the cultural differences, they are used to tell the story differently, shaped by the most powerful emotions. Therefore, Alice and other lawyers help them use chronological storytelling that is common in Western countries.

The strongest moment for Viktor was when he listened to Giacinto’s story, fascinated by his modesty, values and beliefs as not many people would choose the same path with a similar profession. Giacinto has been into human rights since he was thirteen years old. As a lawyer, he could work in a corporate world, make loads of money and yet he decided to stay in Italy and work with refugees regardless of the financial compensation. Following other stories, Nora found Tony’s journey to be very moving and inspiring. His path began during a prayer in 2009 when he heard the Lord tell him that through Sicily, he would touch Africa. At the time, he had no idea what it meant. A few years later, he heard about Francesco’s work in Ragusa and was asked to join him. The very next day, Tony went to a refugee camp, where fifty young men from multiple African nations came out to greet him. Instantly, he knew he was supposed to be right there. In Sicily, Tony touched Africa. With faith, he continues to heal Africa.

As Viktor and Nora interviewed the volunteers, they also uncovered various motivations they had, and what kept them committed despite the odds. “I believe in justice because it is right,” Alice stated while being upset by the current political situation that justifies racism and perceives migrants as something harmful, contagious. There is no longer protection for minors and pregnant women. Not only that, but Italians also started attacking people just because of their different skin colour. “We often do not know
or don’t want to know of what the migrants had to go through in Libya. They are tortured and some say it was a hell on Earth. Refugees are not one country or a nation. Everyone and each of them is one specific person – we should not generalise but speak of them as individuals – he or she could be your friend.“ On the other hand, Tony is not driven by cold reason or justice. He finds motivation in his faith. “I have never met people so desperate, broken and hopeless, but yet so courageous and strong. They want to live. They have a seed of hope that one day they can find life and love. I believe this is the Lord and this motivates me to keep going and loving them.”

The whole trip exceeded their expectations beyond imaginable. They were aiming for at least five photographs. They managed to get ten. In the beginning, they had no clear connections or directions and their journey was full of spontaneous decisions and surprises, which eventually led them to meet all those extraordinary and humble souls, who touched them on so many different levels.

I cannot imagine what they’ve experienced and how tiring, not only physically but also emotionally, the whole project must have been for them. As they shared with me, they had many conflicting emotions during the trip and sometimes it was difficult to remain positive. Despite facing the reality of refugee camps, hearing horrifying stories about the abuse and trauma, and overall realising how complex the situation is, they remained hopeful and peaceful. And I feel the same way. I understand it is because of the knowing that there are still people who devote so much to this cause and find fulfilment and purpose in what they do without being seen or acknowledged.

Let’s look in their eyes, let’s study their expressions - what do they tell us? Can we step into their shoes and see the world from their perspective?