WEBVTT

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Spring 2017,
in the province of Florence,

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life in Poggio alla Croce is turned upside
down by the announcement of the arrival

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of a group of migrants.

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Between fear, anger and indifference,
inhabitants are looking for a solution.

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(Background music and kitchen noises)

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I AM BECAUSE WE ARE

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Piera, a resident in Poggio alla Croce

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In these last few years a lot has changed

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Things were different before

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people were different

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They often came into the centre.

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Now they stay at home,

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the village is less lived in.

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Before we were all in my shop.

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Most of the world,

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most of life took place around it.

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A place to meet, to understand each other,

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maybe argue with different opinions

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but still have a dialogue. It was easier

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it was life... I mean it was life

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Andreas, project creator

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Poggio alla Croce could be defined

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as “a small Switzerland”

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Located in a beautiful spot

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between Chianti and Valdarno

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Residents are active and cooperative

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In summer a nice festival is organized

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attracting people from both valleys

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When problems arise, like ice in winter,

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informations flow over the internet.

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Looked like and ideal place

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Then in April 2017 the “bomb”:

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thirty migrants coming in the “palace”,

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a former hotel in the village

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It sounded as if a spaceship full

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of little black men was about to land

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(tense music)

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Black men are coming, black men are coming

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We are all with our hairs raised,

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very worried, me too to be honest because

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Even if you hear a lot of good

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but also bad about these youngsters

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The strongest reaction, intense and wide,

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was an immediate refusal,

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a “belly” reaction that caused

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an immediate decision

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to collect signatures against,

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in less than three days

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230 signatures were collected

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even if we are some 190

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Attilia, a teacher in migrants school

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A first meeting was held

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one and half year ago in summer

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before the migrants arrived,

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so we did not know them

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They had no face for us, they had no name

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and there was a meeting in the village

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I don’t live in Poggio alla Croce,

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I come from a nearby village

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During the meeting there were

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some very aggressive people,

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I guess they were sincerely scared

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Martin, parson of Poggio alla Croce

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Their reaction was not due to being bad.

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Behind there was also a reality

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that must be told. It must be told that

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none was pepared because none

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had been alerted that these foreigner,

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these migrants were coming

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Noise of iron hammering

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Paolo, a resident in Poggio alla Croce

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Someone started collecting signatures,

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and I agreed only because I wanted to know

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where would these kids be hosted,

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what did they come for then it became

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clear that this was not the reason

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they did not want to welcome them

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So I said my signature was extorted

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and was not in agreement any more

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Luana, a resident in Poggio alla Croce

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They told us

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in a year time we’ll remind you of this..

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we are scared..

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I have an 18months old little girl

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who won’t be able to walk outside anymore

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They asked us to sign against

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but I refused

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and became the black sheep...

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They are simply black

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and this is not easy to accept

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Integration is not easy, not easy.

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Also on their side

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There was a bad feeling around,

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an awful atmosphere

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My legs trembled, really.

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I recognized kids that I knew

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when they were little children.

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And now as grown ups they were scared

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and said they did not want the migrants

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because their life would change,

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it would not be possible

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anymore to go quietly around in Poggio.

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No more walkabouts but they shouted

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all this in a really aggressive way..

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and I started to tremble and was unable

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to tell what I meant,

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that I felt very sorry to see children

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who had grown up together and were

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used to share… and I remember

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there were also coloured children

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in our classes and all played together

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and had now become so

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And now I was more scared of them

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than of the incoming migrants.

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I could sense a rage and violence

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that really frightened me

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(laundry noise)

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When the spaceship with the little

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black men had actually landed

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we managed to organize

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a first circle in a room under

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the church that our parson Martin

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put at our disposal

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for the rest of the story

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we organized a first circle

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where we played,

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by arranging ourselves on the chairs

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in a completely random way,

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so mixed up, a little bit of them and

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a little bit of us.

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We sticked a piece of paper on the wall

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and each and one of us started to write

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Andrea Formiconi, italian, speaks italian

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Then casually pointed the felt-pen towards

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one or the other and they wrote in turn

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Each and one of us wrote his name,

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which country he came from,

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which language he spoke,,,

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This simple game basically opened up

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a whole world, a universe

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because it turned out that with

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fourteen-fifteen of them there were

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twelve-thrteen languages spoken

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Then we discovered illiterates,

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you could tell by the unlikely way they

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held the marker...

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In fact they did not write the name but

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drew it. At the same time

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some of them attended school

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and to one extreme there was a guy

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that had escaped while in his fourth year

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of mathematics at university.

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This helps understand the enormous

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range of stories and different human

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situations hiding behind this stereotype

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which we call with univocal names:

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the migrant..

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which prompts the image of the

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little black man, always the same, and his

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standard story.

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Absolutely not!

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(gentle music)

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(kitchen noises)

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Malò

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I think that the spark that triggered

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all this craving for school

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was a Malian boy, Ali,

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who had spotted me because

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we had spoken a little French

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and one day I saw him arrive at my house

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I don't live in the village,

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there is about a mile of dirt road.

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he arrived alone, with paper 
and pencil, telling me:

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«Io voglio imparare l'italiano».

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We are three guys who embarked on this

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'little school' adventure 
in Poggio alla Croce

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without really knowing what to expect.

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We felt the urge to do something

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to help these guys,

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and we thought that teaching them

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italian language was the thing to do

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also to improve their trust in themselves.

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As we are scared of them blacks,

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they are scared of us whites

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This has to be understood.

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They are afraid, they are afraid of us.

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The funny thing is that a lot of people

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were involved who had nothing .

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to do with teaching.

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People like Marcie who is canadian

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with very little italian but

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she taught italian.. and Willy
(a Peruvian resident)

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who is still with us who reads

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and does dictation

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and anything else with them.

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I teach in primary schools

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on Tuesday when finished

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With my class, often very tired like last

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year when I taught in first

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I sit in the car and say to myself

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“why do you do it ? I'm crazy...

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you should go home to rest or make dinner”

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then I close my eyes and think

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“if it is the right thing to do I'll find

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the missing energies” and there I go

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and afterwards I am happy because you get

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there and see those smiles with white

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teeth, peculiar of black people

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those happy eyes...

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I see Ajan, I see Dedo, the Kurds...

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waiting for you who thank you for

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being there, thanking you for being there,

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looking forward for you

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to teach them something.

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(Car noise...)

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Laura, Andreas' student

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I arrived here a bit by chance,

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I got to know this experience

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thanks to Andreas, his stories

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in university classrooms and I decided to

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to come and have a look.

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The question I get asked most often

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is why I'm doing this, especially because

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what strikes me about me is the fact

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that I come from almost 90 kilometres

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almost two hours by car anyway

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just to get here.

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It's not easy to explain,

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because the reason

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lies in so many little things:

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gestures, looks, emotions,

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the feelings you have when

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you get in touch with these people

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which in the end are lives

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are experiences, are worlds

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with which you come into contact

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and of which you often know nothing.

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(Traffic noise...)

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(Country noises, chirping...)

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(Squeaking bicycle...)

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(Background music...)

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Madou, student of the school

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I go to school in Figline Valdarno

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every day, On Mondays and Tuesdays

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I go by car but the other days

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I ride my bike. It's not difficult to go,

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but it is difficult to return

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because it takes an hour and thirty

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minutes, it's difficult, It's tiring.

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When I was in Africa I didn't go to

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school and fortunately I found myself in

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Europe and met the people who

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are helping me

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and enrolled me in school.

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My goal is to learn the Italian language

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I would like to stay in Italy,

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I would like to work to help

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my family in Africa. Therefore

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I have to concentrate on studying,

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it's my goal.

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My name is Madou Koulibaly, I come

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from Guinea and I'm 20 years old.

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I arrived in Italy a year and

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two months ago, it was a very

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difficult trip, I can't forget it,

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It was very dangerous.

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I sacrificed my life

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to seek my fortune in Europe

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and thank God I entered Italy

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on 13 June 2018

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and I was transferred

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to Poggio alla Croce.

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I met some very good people who

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treated me like one of their own,

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they are like my parents here,

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not only me but all the Africans

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who live in Poggio alla Croce.

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I would like to continue studying,

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if there is a possibility,

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I'd like to study and learn

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a job, for example a welder.

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(Noise spring water, chirping...)

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Italy saved me in the sea,

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in Italy I went to school

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and I would like to continue studying,

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I don't know what will happen afterwards.

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Poggio alla Croce is my village.

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The path is chaotic,

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one cannot expect to follow

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a preordained thread:

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it would kill this kind of school.

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So you have to follow the wind.

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An example would be when

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Samba had written the curriculum

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on the computer,

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then of course you try to help:

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"Samba, what does this mean?

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What's this...?"

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Then we read:

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"driving experience", so I ask:

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"Samba, what did you drive?"

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He light up immediately and says

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"Cow!"

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and a whole other discussion

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started from there

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about how things change over time,

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how they change in Africa,

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how they change here.

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This is an example of digression.

00:20:48.234 --> 00:20:51.800
It's a people-centred school, essentially

00:20:51.800 --> 00:20:55.800
(Soft music, dialogue in the background..)

00:21:55.321 --> 00:21:57.571
We all have attics full of old computers

00:21:57.571 --> 00:21:59.521
and we don't know what to do with them.

00:21:59.521 --> 00:22:01.380
It's a problem because we have to take

00:22:01.380 --> 00:22:05.790
them to the eco-center and so we've been

00:22:05.792 --> 00:22:08.178
spreading this information:

00:22:08.178 --> 00:22:09.589
"Do you have an old computer?

00:22:09.589 --> 00:22:12.469
You don't know what to do with it,
is that a problem for you?

00:22:12.469 --> 00:22:15.379
Instead of giving it to the
recycling centre, give it to us,

00:22:15.379 --> 00:22:20.302
we install a free software operating
system, i.e. Linux

00:22:20.302 --> 00:22:24.018
a lightweight version of Ubuntu

00:22:24.018 --> 00:22:27.409
that fits into old computers

00:22:27.409 --> 00:22:29.487
and easily "resurrects" them.

00:22:29.487 --> 00:22:32.254
The Ubuntu operating system

00:22:32.254 --> 00:22:35.665
is so called because it is a concept

00:22:35.665 --> 00:22:37.983
from southern Africa and

00:22:37.983 --> 00:22:40.952
Nelson Mandela in a beautiful

00:22:40.952 --> 00:22:43.304
video that we used
for a work with the students,

00:22:43.304 --> 00:22:46.539
describes it with a little story:

00:22:46.539 --> 00:22:48.809
"Once upon a time, when a traveller

00:22:48.809 --> 00:22:51.228
arrived in a village and he was

00:22:51.228 --> 00:22:53.383
tired, thirsty and hungry, no one would

00:22:53.383 --> 00:22:55.508
ever ask him any question,

00:22:55.508 --> 00:22:58.089
they simply brought him something to drink

00:22:58.089 --> 00:23:00.036
and food. This is Ubuntu, that is

00:23:00.036 --> 00:23:02.787
thinking about the other being aware

00:23:02.787 --> 00:23:04.976
that this creates a community

00:23:04.976 --> 00:23:07.716
that lives well if we all do that."

00:23:07.716 --> 00:23:10.346
Ubuntu is a great African philosophy,

00:23:10.346 --> 00:23:14.480
a great African thought...

00:23:14.480 --> 00:23:18.480
that before getting to the help

00:23:18.480 --> 00:23:20.812
it starts with the fact that we're all

00:23:20.812 --> 00:23:23.704
brothers, if I help one person

00:23:23.704 --> 00:23:25.830
that person can help

00:23:25.830 --> 00:23:27.748
another person close to me,

00:23:27.748 --> 00:23:29.746
therefore a general connection

00:23:29.746 --> 00:23:32.632
of society in that we all consider

00:23:32.632 --> 00:23:34.622
ourselves brothers and sisters.

00:23:34.622 --> 00:23:36.683
What happened in Poggio alla Croce

00:23:36.683 --> 00:23:38.932
is Ubuntu, it's definitely

00:23:38.932 --> 00:23:40.732
authentic Ubuntu.

00:23:40.732 --> 00:23:43.952
(Chorus of African children...)

00:23:43.952 --> 00:23:48.336
I think that following a principle

00:23:48.336 --> 00:23:53.387
where helping someone will help me

00:23:53.387 --> 00:23:55.668
in turn is good for both, better than

00:23:55.668 --> 00:23:58.043
fighting with each other,

00:23:58.043 --> 00:24:00.530
even though in fight wins may be

00:24:00.530 --> 00:24:04.120
happier than the loser.

00:24:04.120 --> 00:24:06.575
This principle guides my whole life

00:24:06.575 --> 00:24:12.005
since I started reasoning I have always

00:24:12.005 --> 00:24:19.995
used the time I had available 
in social activities.

00:24:19.995 --> 00:24:24.069
But not for “goodism”, not because

00:24:24.069 --> 00:24:27.713
I am good and consequently must do good,

00:24:27.713 --> 00:24:31.544
help others, help beggars, no.

00:24:31.544 --> 00:24:34.758
Maybe I am led by selfishness,

00:24:34.758 --> 00:24:38.056
I think I earn something this way

00:24:38.056 --> 00:24:42.956
and so live a better life, be serene.

00:24:42.956 --> 00:24:47.118
You get a lot of rip-offs, but not like

00:24:47.118 --> 00:24:50.318
those you get when fighting and losing.

00:24:50.318 --> 00:24:56.172
More like opportunities that leave

00:24:56.172 --> 00:25:01.891
a bitter taste in our mouth 
but do not create

00:25:01.891 --> 00:25:07.288
big problems. (Opportunities) 
that I know I must seize.

00:25:07.288 --> 00:25:13.702
There were problems of an almost racist
nature in Poggio alla Croce, so to speak,

00:25:13.702 --> 00:25:17.030
and I stepped in for that too.

00:25:17.030 --> 00:25:19.508
It was my way of doing things.

00:25:19.508 --> 00:25:22.032
I'm a migrant myself in Poggio alla Croce,

00:25:22.032 --> 00:25:23.942
moving from town to the country.

00:25:23.942 --> 00:25:26.231
I choosed to and almost from start

00:25:26.231 --> 00:25:29.589
And I tried to integrate 
myself into the association.

00:25:29.589 --> 00:25:31.669
here in Poggio alla Croce,

00:25:31.669 --> 00:25:35.050
because it was natural for me.

00:25:35.050 --> 00:25:37.119
It is a way of living,

00:25:37.119 --> 00:25:42.939
no heroism, it's normal
I think everybody

00:25:42.939 --> 00:25:46.539
can understand this.

00:25:46.539 --> 00:25:48.079
Marcie, canadian teacher

00:25:48.079 --> 00:25:51.429
When I hear the word Ubuntu
it strikes according with me

00:25:51.429 --> 00:25:54.112
because it means “humanity”.

00:25:54.112 --> 00:25:57.370
And in hebrew religion we have a word

00:25:57.370 --> 00:25:59.400
which I just learned

00:25:59.400 --> 00:26:03.400
“tikkum olam”, which means

00:26:03.400 --> 00:26:05.410
healing the world.

00:26:05.410 --> 00:26:07.745
So I see how they connect together

00:26:07.745 --> 00:26:09.752
and it's really quite beautiful,

00:26:09.752 --> 00:26:13.752
because slowly slowly people are
one by one

00:26:13.752 --> 00:26:17.780
healing the world and show humanity.

00:26:17.780 --> 00:26:20.134
We must concentrate on this positive part

00:26:20.134 --> 00:26:22.424
of the world because if we don’t,

00:26:22.424 --> 00:26:25.114
if we do nothing, we are doomed.

00:26:25.114 --> 00:26:27.800
So for me, coming here is a small small

00:26:27.800 --> 00:26:31.174
thing but it has a lot of 
meaning in my life

00:26:31.174 --> 00:26:39.619
This idea of Ubuntu, this idea 
of refurbishing computers,

00:26:39.619 --> 00:26:42.578
objects tools that were doomed to be

00:26:42.578 --> 00:26:46.344
thrown away, is what inspired also

00:26:46.344 --> 00:26:49.769
this community to act and slowly to

00:26:49.769 --> 00:26:57.738
re-generate itself. This is what actually
means our motto “We need you”.

00:26:57.738 --> 00:27:01.778
That motto, in fact, means just that.

00:27:01.778 --> 00:27:05.778
Our local community was re-generated

00:27:05.778 --> 00:27:09.210
by your arrival, thanks to your spaceship

00:27:09.210 --> 00:27:11.611
with you, little black men, 
because it generated

00:27:11.611 --> 00:27:16.608
into us a new need to 
co-hoperate, to leave

00:27:16.608 --> 00:27:20.608
our homes and our sofas, 
forget about tv,

00:27:20.608 --> 00:27:23.597
get out trying to solve together a problem

00:27:23.597 --> 00:27:26.607
for the benefit of the whole community.

00:27:31.778 --> 00:27:34.148
Samba, student

00:27:34.148 --> 00:27:40.198
(words from a malian rap song, 
music in headphones)

00:27:51.570 --> 00:27:54.430
I am Samba and I come from Mali,

00:27:54.430 --> 00:27:57.996
I am an artist

00:27:57.996 --> 00:28:02.709
but before when I sang with my friends

00:28:02.709 --> 00:28:08.162
my family was against me making music,

00:28:08.166 --> 00:28:11.305
but I love it so much.

00:28:11.305 --> 00:28:15.521
In 2016 I went first to Algeria

00:28:15.521 --> 00:28:21.173
then also to Libia

00:28:21.173 --> 00:28:24.963
Then I arrived here two years ago.

00:28:24.963 --> 00:28:27.698
I have a complicated life,

00:28:27.698 --> 00:28:36.149
I would like to be an artist

00:28:36.149 --> 00:28:44.457
a rapper like many italians 
(Ghali, Sfera Ebbasta..)

00:28:44.457 --> 00:28:47.957
I would like to do what they do

00:28:47.957 --> 00:28:49.327
Luana, a resident

00:28:49.327 --> 00:28:51.027
I don’t really know what happened

00:28:51.027 --> 00:28:52.808
but we have all changed

00:28:52.808 --> 00:28:56.022
I found out they changed in relation to us

00:28:56.022 --> 00:28:58.503
in the begining they would just pass by,

00:28:58.503 --> 00:29:00.718
just give us a little smile but when they

00:29:00.718 --> 00:29:02.510
realised we really liked them…

00:29:02.510 --> 00:29:07.197
I cannot speak for all, 
but for people like me.

00:29:07.197 --> 00:29:09.474
When we see a new one we stop him

00:29:09.474 --> 00:29:11.840
with a “ehi”, and if he is tall tell him

00:29:11.840 --> 00:29:14.564
to bend down or we can’t reach him, and he

00:29:14.564 --> 00:29:17.454
calls us and we say 
“grandmas and grandpas”

00:29:17.454 --> 00:29:19.614
and he replies “grandpa,grandma”,

00:29:19.614 --> 00:29:23.614
We speak italian so we try to make

00:29:23.614 --> 00:29:26.840
ourselves understood and when we see

00:29:26.840 --> 00:29:29.119
they reaaly don’t understand we gesture

00:29:29.119 --> 00:29:31.676
like this..to make them bend down

00:29:31.676 --> 00:29:34.695
And so they learn and when they pass

00:29:34.695 --> 00:29:38.396
they ask “nonna, need help ?”..

00:29:38.396 --> 00:29:40.319
”no, not today, tomorrow”.

00:29:40.319 --> 00:29:46.781
Some know some english and so I tell them

00:29:46.781 --> 00:29:49.965
“tomorrow” and they understand.

00:29:49.972 --> 00:29:53.984
Yes, but if you knew the story 
about "tomorrow"... Bloody hell!

00:29:53.984 --> 00:29:56.492
I always said I have no room at home but

00:29:56.492 --> 00:29:59.424
if I did I would happily take one or two,

00:29:59.424 --> 00:30:01.333
depends on how many I could take in

00:30:01.333 --> 00:30:03.273
If the house were mine,

00:30:03.275 --> 00:30:04.955
because in my view

00:30:04.955 --> 00:30:07.412
they also need to be understood

00:30:07.412 --> 00:30:11.253
they need to feel the good

00:30:11.253 --> 00:30:16.907
not just through a smile...

00:30:16.907 --> 00:30:21.397
There are other essential things in life
of all, especially in their case,

00:30:21.397 --> 00:30:23.998
they leave their families and flee from

00:30:23.998 --> 00:30:28.480
very bad systems, suffer hunger...

00:30:28.480 --> 00:30:33.367
...many things... to come in Italy 
they faced... and so on...

00:30:33.367 --> 00:30:35.233
Maybe we are able to give them this

00:30:35.233 --> 00:30:37.250
things, we are just two or three that

00:30:37.250 --> 00:30:39.250
are really fond of them straight from our

00:30:39.250 --> 00:30:40.731
hearts not just from our mouths

00:30:40.731 --> 00:30:42.691
And they can feel it, as soon as they see

00:30:42.691 --> 00:30:49.054
us they come for a kiss, for some food,

00:30:49.054 --> 00:30:52.184
for biscuits, as with a little child that

00:30:52.184 --> 00:30:54.594
needs to be taught to speak.

00:30:54.594 --> 00:30:58.682
With those we see more often,

00:30:58.682 --> 00:31:05.226
we got this contact, so we spend time

00:31:05.226 --> 00:31:08.432
but it's not wasted time, it's good time

00:31:08.432 --> 00:31:13.825
Therefore... people who saw us doing that

00:31:13.825 --> 00:31:15.825
in the beginning were critical

00:31:15.825 --> 00:31:17.979
but now they say “it is true they make

00:31:17.979 --> 00:31:23.714
themselves loved, but how did you do it ?”

00:31:23.714 --> 00:31:25.675
How ? Well we talk to them!

00:31:25.687 --> 00:31:29.687
Sooner or later they understand…

00:31:31.060 --> 00:31:34.413
Slowly things got more stable,

00:31:34.413 --> 00:31:36.493
these guys are very nice

00:31:36.493 --> 00:31:38.809
they don't bother anyone, 
they greet everyone,

00:31:38.809 --> 00:31:42.995
they pass they call you, we reply,

00:31:42.995 --> 00:31:46.260
at least I do, others won’t.

00:31:46.260 --> 00:31:48.389
The village is quiet now,

00:31:48.389 --> 00:31:50.751
it showed the worst of itself because

00:31:50.751 --> 00:31:54.634
misleading informations help produce

00:31:54.634 --> 00:31:58.243
bad reactions. I mean...

00:31:58.243 --> 00:31:59.983
Then you learn things, you see them,

00:31:59.983 --> 00:32:02.947
you live them because in the end

00:32:03.163 --> 00:32:05.472
it's about leaving with them, isn't it?

00:32:05.472 --> 00:32:07.232
and it's also nice.

00:32:07.232 --> 00:32:12.434
The way I see it, these guys were jailed

00:32:12.434 --> 00:32:14.898
they are locked in there...

00:32:14.898 --> 00:32:17.727
without this group of people that taught

00:32:17.727 --> 00:32:19.597
them italian and other things ..

00:32:19.597 --> 00:32:23.246
what could they do? I mean...

00:32:23.246 --> 00:32:28.134
If you close thirty guys in a shelter....

00:32:28.134 --> 00:32:31.850
What for ? What's the use?

00:32:31.850 --> 00:32:34.505
it seems to me that it does 
not help anything

00:32:34.505 --> 00:32:37.806
If they are not made active, they are all
young, 20 years old guys

00:32:37.806 --> 00:32:39.578
what are they supposed to do ?

00:32:39.578 --> 00:32:42.268
If they do something, if it is possible

00:32:42.268 --> 00:32:45.791
to make them do something, work, play..

00:32:45.791 --> 00:32:51.555
then it is different. They can be useful

00:32:51.555 --> 00:32:54.218
but you must train them, let them in,

00:32:54.218 --> 00:32:56.610
something impossible to do 
in two-three months

00:32:56.610 --> 00:32:59.148
Since then you have to overcome distrust,

00:32:59.148 --> 00:33:00.981
seeing a black man by your side

00:33:00.981 --> 00:33:04.851
has some effects - it has to be said.

00:33:05.195 --> 00:33:07.220
But in the end this means nothing

00:33:07.220 --> 00:33:08.895
in the end he's like me, I mean...

00:33:08.921 --> 00:33:11.621
You learn to know learn him, he's a guy.

00:33:11.621 --> 00:33:14.393
But even if I'm with you, 
who don't know you

00:33:14.393 --> 00:33:17.809
may be we share the same opinion;

00:33:17.809 --> 00:33:19.609
it seems logical to me.

00:33:19.609 --> 00:33:21.659
(Car noise)

00:33:21.659 --> 00:33:24.609
Sibghat, student

00:33:27.490 --> 00:33:31.946
The first village I saw after 
entering Europe

00:33:31.946 --> 00:33:34.760
was Poggio alla Croce

00:33:34.760 --> 00:33:36.622
I will never forget because they gave

00:33:36.622 --> 00:33:41.630
a new life, an unforgettable experience:

00:33:41.630 --> 00:33:44.770
the people, the joy, they 
gave me a respect

00:33:44.770 --> 00:33:49.160
for society, from day one when they

00:33:49.160 --> 00:33:53.951
took me around to look for a job, to take

00:33:53.951 --> 00:33:59.165
the driving licence, to school..

00:33:59.165 --> 00:34:05.277
and I thought “look, these people ask

00:34:05.277 --> 00:34:09.593
nothing of you, but give you a lot,

00:34:09.593 --> 00:34:12.110
indeed a life, a new life

00:34:12.110 --> 00:34:13.110
(music in the bar)

00:34:15.785 --> 00:34:16.785
Hi anna...

00:34:16.785 --> 00:34:17.785
Ciao Sibi!

00:34:23.821 --> 00:34:26.541
I have to give them something back

00:34:27.531 --> 00:34:31.244
so I thought, all right, it can be a good

00:34:31.244 --> 00:34:34.357
thing that I go along

00:34:34.357 --> 00:34:37.957
with them, helping them also phisically”

00:34:37.957 --> 00:34:39.958
In my life I will never forget

00:34:39.958 --> 00:34:44.276
this village and the people

00:34:44.276 --> 00:34:46.157
who know me, as well,

00:34:46.157 --> 00:34:48.125
My family,even if not in Italy,

00:34:48.125 --> 00:34:51.305
they know Poggio alla Croce!

00:34:51.305 --> 00:34:56.231
It is a big joy for them too,
and in my view

00:34:56.231 --> 00:35:00.420
if they ever meet an italian or european

00:35:00.420 --> 00:35:03.365
person they will respect them because

00:35:03.365 --> 00:35:07.365
they have given a good thing, a new life

00:35:07.365 --> 00:35:09.932
to their son.

00:35:09.932 --> 00:35:15.678
In future I would like to help 
with the school,

00:35:15.678 --> 00:35:20.773
I don’t speak Italian well but 
I could help

00:35:20.773 --> 00:35:25.160
with the Pakistani who don’t speak english

00:35:25.160 --> 00:35:28.505
and have not studied. I could be

00:35:28.505 --> 00:35:31.212
an interpreter between them and an italian

00:35:31.212 --> 00:35:34.753
explaining the rules and other things.

00:35:34.753 --> 00:35:38.261
It would help them but also one way

00:35:38.261 --> 00:35:45.250
to give something back to society, 
to the village.

00:35:45.250 --> 00:35:49.610
You are integrated in this society but now

00:35:49.610 --> 00:35:53.358
you are teaching other people 
to integrate in society

00:35:53.358 --> 00:35:56.969
so that they can do good new things.

00:35:56.969 --> 00:36:02.101
I have a lot to learn still, but people

00:36:02.101 --> 00:36:07.798
from Poggio gave me a nice life, something

00:36:07.798 --> 00:36:14.946
difficult to explain in words, but I will

00:36:14.946 --> 00:36:17.596
always try to give something back to this

00:36:17.596 --> 00:36:21.596
unforgettable, beautiful village.

00:36:21.596 --> 00:36:27.229
This initiative (the school) helped people

00:36:27.229 --> 00:36:32.747
who did not know each 
other to get in touch,

00:36:32.747 --> 00:36:38.610
collaborate, become friends..
Not only the migrants

00:36:38.610 --> 00:36:43.287
have a school for italian and mathematics

00:36:43.287 --> 00:36:47.287
but we all from the village 
have learnt to mix,

00:36:47.287 --> 00:36:49.541
live together and it is much better.

00:36:49.541 --> 00:36:51.898
Another memory that I have and I think

00:36:51.898 --> 00:36:56.748
I will never forget is the second day

00:36:56.748 --> 00:36:59.880
that I came back to the school and it was

00:36:59.880 --> 00:37:01.555
the birthday of the great Duccio,

00:37:01.555 --> 00:37:05.555
our mascot. He was one year old

00:37:05.555 --> 00:37:10.753
and at a certain point during the mini

00:37:10.753 --> 00:37:13.316
buffet that his mum had prepared for us

00:37:13.316 --> 00:37:18.371
the boys opened a bag and pulled out

00:37:18.371 --> 00:37:23.172
a little wooden cart, all coloured

00:37:23.172 --> 00:37:25.776
and you could see that it was homemade,

00:37:25.776 --> 00:37:27.867
the kind that I could find

00:37:27.867 --> 00:37:30.017
in my grandmother's attic.

00:37:30.017 --> 00:37:34.017
They were pieces of wood assembled with

00:37:34.017 --> 00:37:38.816
this rope attached to pull the cart along

00:37:38.816 --> 00:37:41.116
with wheels it was really well made.

00:37:41.116 --> 00:37:43.586
Claudio, resident, father of Duccio

00:37:43.586 --> 00:37:46.806
It was handcrafted by them

00:37:46.806 --> 00:37:49.295
and the gift was really appreciated by

00:37:49.295 --> 00:37:53.295
Duccio because among the many toys here at

00:37:53.295 --> 00:37:56.605
home, fantastic toys that play, sing,

00:37:56.605 --> 00:38:02.588
shout, this simple wooden cart made with

00:38:02.588 --> 00:38:07.384
pieces of wood and buttons... he liked it

00:38:07.384 --> 00:38:09.254
immediately and played with it without

00:38:09.254 --> 00:38:11.332
knocking it on the ground as he does

00:38:11.332 --> 00:38:13.200
with other toys after thirty seconds of

00:38:13.200 --> 00:38:15.521
of holding it in his hands and
throwing it away.

00:38:15.521 --> 00:38:18.746
Also because, maybe, since when he was

00:38:18.746 --> 00:38:22.746
a baby, as soon as he was born, we tried,

00:38:22.746 --> 00:38:28.223
both me and my partner, to integrate

00:38:28.223 --> 00:38:31.407
Duccio together with these guys,

00:38:31.407 --> 00:38:35.407
without letting him live this experience
as if it was something outstanding

00:38:35.407 --> 00:38:37.587
but as if they were our relatives, our

00:38:37.587 --> 00:38:44.827
friends, our brothers, when he sees them

00:38:44.827 --> 00:38:46.754
he laughs and goes to meet them.

00:38:46.754 --> 00:38:49.852
You know, my son is just 18 months old...

00:38:49.852 --> 00:38:53.031
He has practically become the mascot

00:38:53.031 --> 00:38:56.405
of the shelter because every time they see

00:38:56.405 --> 00:38:59.008
him they call him: "Duscio, Duscio"

00:38:59.008 --> 00:39:01.381
you can see that when there is "Duscio"

00:39:01.381 --> 00:39:07.069
they smile... and

00:39:07.069 --> 00:39:10.358
and I am really happy about that.

00:39:10.358 --> 00:39:13.021
It's a cliché, but I want my son to become

00:39:13.021 --> 00:39:14.961
a citizen of the world, not a citizen of

00:39:14.961 --> 00:39:16.411
Poggio alla Croce.

00:39:16.411 --> 00:39:19.594
So... everything's fine... and work?

00:39:19.594 --> 00:39:23.594
(Dialogues not intelligible between 
Claudio and Salif, student...)

00:39:33.772 --> 00:39:37.565
Duscio! Hello Duscio...

00:39:38.525 --> 00:39:41.315
And bread? Bread? Bru

00:39:41.315 --> 00:39:44.745
(Madou explains the recipe for bread,
oil and salt in his own language)

00:39:44.745 --> 00:39:47.580
cocò...? bru, cocò... And oil?

00:39:47.580 --> 00:39:51.580
tulù bru, tulù, cocò...

00:39:55.625 --> 00:39:59.141
So: bru, tulu, cocò!

00:40:01.587 --> 00:40:03.159
You are good!

00:40:03.216 --> 00:40:05.077
Yeah, good.

00:40:05.077 --> 00:40:07.797
(Laundry noises...)

00:40:14.410 --> 00:40:17.735
My name is Omar and I come from Senegal,

00:40:17.735 --> 00:40:20.953
I have been in Italy for two years.

00:40:20.953 --> 00:40:23.670
I've arrived in Poggio alla Croce

00:40:23.670 --> 00:40:26.275
and I'm happy, I've met many people.

00:40:26.275 --> 00:40:33.229
they teach a bit of Italian and I became

00:40:33.229 --> 00:40:37.229
friends with these people I go to school,

00:40:37.229 --> 00:40:42.744
I did the grape harvest and
the olive picking.

00:40:44.664 --> 00:40:52.135
They helped me to find a good job,

00:40:52.135 --> 00:40:54.795
I found a mother and a father,

00:40:54.795 --> 00:40:57.205
I only miss my brothers but my mother

00:40:57.205 --> 00:40:59.518
and my father are close to me,

00:40:59.518 --> 00:41:02.686
they are Paola and Gabriele.

00:41:02.686 --> 00:41:06.686
They are very good,
all of them in Poggio alla Croce.

00:41:09.026 --> 00:41:11.686
(Pruning noise...)

00:41:11.686 --> 00:41:14.426
When a foreigner comes here and leaves

00:41:14.426 --> 00:41:16.837
his homeland, he still has this nostalgia,

00:41:16.837 --> 00:41:19.501
he believes that where he goes

00:41:19.501 --> 00:41:23.285
he will perhaps find a welcome, a smile.

00:41:23.285 --> 00:41:26.950
When he comes and finds rejection it is

00:41:26.950 --> 00:41:30.655
a moment of great difficulty, a sadness.

00:41:30.655 --> 00:41:34.252
We are all foreigners to someone else,

00:41:34.252 --> 00:41:40.886
I too am a foreigner and I arrived here

00:41:40.886 --> 00:41:44.181
in 2000 and now 19 years have passed

00:41:44.181 --> 00:41:47.377
and I am here as a priest
in Poggio alla Croce.

00:41:47.377 --> 00:41:51.983
They give the idea that they have somehow

00:41:51.983 --> 00:41:53.859
taken the destiny of their lives back

00:41:53.859 --> 00:41:55.733
into their own hands.

00:41:55.733 --> 00:41:57.978
The transformation of course,

00:41:57.978 --> 00:42:00.371
and this is perhaps one of the
significant aspects,

00:42:00.371 --> 00:42:02.858
is not just about them:

00:42:02.858 --> 00:42:07.154
it is always wrong to focus on 'them'.

00:42:07.154 --> 00:42:11.154
Things work when the context allows

00:42:11.154 --> 00:42:14.931
itself to be changed and in this sense

00:42:14.931 --> 00:42:19.046
this is a positive reaction 
of the population.

00:42:19.046 --> 00:42:23.920
Old ladies who were perhaps terrified

00:42:23.920 --> 00:42:26.612
in those famous, awful meetings

00:42:26.612 --> 00:42:29.150
at the beginning can now call them,

00:42:29.150 --> 00:42:31.524
when the woodcutter unloads a ton of wood

00:42:31.524 --> 00:42:33.684
in front of their house and for them

00:42:33.684 --> 00:42:36.004
there is the problem of taking it to the

00:42:36.004 --> 00:42:37.944
garden, bringing it inside...

00:42:37.944 --> 00:42:40.197
and so, as they say, they call a couple

00:42:40.197 --> 00:42:42.154
of these "big guys" and say

00:42:42.154 --> 00:42:44.184
"Will you bring it inside?"

00:42:44.184 --> 00:42:46.444
and clearly these guys do the job

00:42:46.444 --> 00:42:49.048
in ten minutes and they maybe pay them

00:42:49.048 --> 00:42:51.950
a cappuccino or give them some money.

00:42:51.950 --> 00:42:54.760
In this way a normal life has been

00:42:54.760 --> 00:42:57.705
recovered, it is healthy normality that

00:42:57.705 --> 00:43:05.672
makes up the real civilisation
of a population.

00:43:06.343 --> 00:43:08.784
And by the way, and this moves me,

00:43:08.784 --> 00:43:11.487
the people who are now with me and

00:43:11.487 --> 00:43:14.019
who have involved me in this adventure,

00:43:14.019 --> 00:43:18.019
two in particular, two women who started

00:43:18.019 --> 00:43:20.547
this adventure, are the same people

00:43:20.547 --> 00:43:23.321
who welcomed me twenty-six years ago

00:43:23.321 --> 00:43:26.261
when I arrived here in San Polo.

00:43:26.261 --> 00:43:28.503
And this is important for me, because

00:43:28.503 --> 00:43:31.486
it was a beautiful experience that I had

00:43:31.486 --> 00:43:33.598
and that I want to give
to others, to them.

00:43:34.711 --> 00:43:39.652
What is the name of this dish? Mafe

00:43:41.652 --> 00:43:43.222
How do you make it?

00:43:43.222 --> 00:43:44.816
Just meat, vegetables...?

00:43:44.816 --> 00:43:47.254
How do you manage this dish?

00:43:47.747 --> 00:43:53.338
Meat, some vegetables... tomato...

00:43:53.339 --> 00:43:59.413
Peanut... Peanut butter Good...

00:44:03.835 --> 00:44:06.318
.opala...show him, show him...

00:44:07.612 --> 00:44:10.121
Ah! Is this opala? Yes, this is opala.

00:44:10.121 --> 00:44:16.241
(undecipherable dialogue)

00:44:17.273 --> 00:44:19.243
How do you do it, do you have

00:44:19.243 --> 00:44:20.043
to clean, cut?

00:44:20.043 --> 00:44:24.043
Yes, clean, cut... Good! Bravo!

00:44:24.043 --> 00:44:26.063
I'll let you guys work

00:44:26.063 --> 00:44:28.675
while I watch and help you.

00:44:29.646 --> 00:44:31.636
What is this white thing?

00:44:34.326 --> 00:44:35.926
In Poular: "Bantara"

00:44:36.254 --> 00:44:38.066
and how do you cook it?

00:44:38.477 --> 00:44:39.477
A long time...

00:44:39.887 --> 00:44:41.494
Does it take a long time?

00:44:41.725 --> 00:44:43.795
yes, it takes a while... I don'tknow...

00:44:43.935 --> 00:44:46.405
In Senegal yes, I don't know in Europe...

00:44:46.526 --> 00:44:48.196
it's too hard

00:44:48.383 --> 00:44:50.693
ah you don't know...

00:44:50.900 --> 00:44:54.500
(undecipherable dialogue)

00:44:54.647 --> 00:44:56.895
...because if it is fresh it cooks

00:44:56.895 --> 00:44:59.037
very quickly if it is old

00:44:59.037 --> 00:45:00.627
it takes longer...

00:45:00.627 --> 00:45:04.627
(Music, kitchen noises...)

00:45:38.351 --> 00:45:40.381
This sort of migrants' Barbiana

00:45:40.381 --> 00:45:41.681
at Villa Viviana in

00:45:41.681 --> 00:45:43.341
Poggio alla Croce closes.

00:45:43.341 --> 00:45:45.642
Today there is a great silence

00:45:45.642 --> 00:45:47.612
since these young people who

00:45:47.612 --> 00:45:49.530
had brought life back to the

00:45:49.530 --> 00:45:51.310
depopulated village two years ago

00:45:51.310 --> 00:45:53.320
were forced to leave.

00:45:53.320 --> 00:45:57.320
(Music...)

00:45:57.320 --> 00:45:59.741
They left in a hurry without warning,

00:45:59.741 --> 00:46:01.707
some things are still there.

00:46:01.707 --> 00:46:03.509
The Cristoforo cooperative,

00:46:03.509 --> 00:46:05.415
which ran the centre, is leaving because

00:46:05.415 --> 00:46:07.847
its budget, reduced from 35 to 21 euros

00:46:07.847 --> 00:46:10.058
per migrant, has already had to close

00:46:10.058 --> 00:46:11.780
5 out of 17 centres and this

00:46:11.780 --> 00:46:13.373
is only the beginning:

00:46:13.373 --> 00:46:14.970
the situation is no longer

00:46:14.970 --> 00:46:16.697
financially sustainable.

00:46:16.697 --> 00:46:18.257
Some thirty migrants arrived in

00:46:18.257 --> 00:46:21.381
Poggio alla Croce, in the municipality 
of Figline and Incisa,

00:46:21.381 --> 00:46:22.728
two years ago

00:46:22.728 --> 00:46:24.440
amidst the mistrust and protests of

00:46:24.440 --> 00:46:26.108
the few inhabitants of the village.

00:46:26.108 --> 00:46:27.458
But then everything changed

00:46:27.458 --> 00:46:29.288
some adopted them, some decided

00:46:29.288 --> 00:46:31.088
o improvise a school, to teach them

00:46:31.088 --> 00:46:34.273
how to cook or prune olive trees...

00:46:34.273 --> 00:46:36.568
The result was a unique experience

00:46:36.568 --> 00:46:39.598
of integration until now, when 
all of a sudden they were

00:46:39.598 --> 00:46:40.938
forced to move to another

00:46:40.938 --> 00:46:43.317
centre in Sesto Fiorentino.

00:46:47.774 --> 00:46:51.774
(gentle music)

00:46:52.164 --> 00:46:55.414
Today was the last day of study at

00:46:55.414 --> 00:46:59.108
Poggio alla Croce, it was a school

00:46:59.108 --> 00:47:03.108
where foreigners learn a lot of things,

00:47:03.108 --> 00:47:05.829
it was the school where we learned

00:47:05.829 --> 00:47:07.666
everything we needed

00:47:07.666 --> 00:47:12.523
Italian, English and above all 
Italian culture.

00:47:12.523 --> 00:47:16.164
At this time it is very difficult to be

00:47:16.164 --> 00:47:18.364
away from the inhabitants of

00:47:18.364 --> 00:47:26.011
Poggio alla Croce or to be away 
from our teachers.

00:47:26.092 --> 00:47:28.542
We are very sorry but we have

00:47:28.542 --> 00:47:31.657
not chosen, we tell you that we do not

00:47:31.657 --> 00:47:34.193
have many words to say because living

00:47:34.193 --> 00:47:35.995
with you has been very beautiful.

00:47:35.995 --> 00:47:39.073
You must be proud of yourselves for all

00:47:39.073 --> 00:47:41.192
that you have done

00:47:41.192 --> 00:47:43.202
and are still doing:

00:47:43.722 --> 00:47:46.429
you have created an incredible and

00:47:46.429 --> 00:47:49.692
unforgettable history in your little

00:47:49.692 --> 00:47:51.896
village, a village where humanity

00:47:51.896 --> 00:47:53.454
is respected a lot.

00:47:54.269 --> 00:47:56.899
For some people, living with African

00:47:56.899 --> 00:47:58.941
boys is a bore or a sin.

00:47:58.941 --> 00:48:02.391
But with you it was not like that,

00:48:02.391 --> 00:48:05.857
always with smiles, nice words

00:48:05.857 --> 00:48:08.310
without swearing or distinction of skin.

00:48:09.000 --> 00:48:13.165
We were lucky to live with you

00:48:13.165 --> 00:48:18.655
in this journey. After the study

00:48:18.655 --> 00:48:23.062
in Poggio we understood that each of us

00:48:23.062 --> 00:48:26.886
must be the master of our own destiny.

00:48:26.886 --> 00:48:29.596
Thank you for teaching us a good attitude

00:48:29.596 --> 00:48:32.616
how to behave in Europe, thank you for

00:48:32.616 --> 00:48:35.420
making us understand that we should not be

00:48:35.420 --> 00:48:38.299
like people who are delinquents or beggars

00:48:39.559 --> 00:48:41.235
I will never forget you,

00:48:42.225 --> 00:48:44.422
warm regards....

00:48:58.355 --> 00:49:01.531
In my opinion, this story of the Poggio,

00:49:01.531 --> 00:49:03.584
of the little school, is really a love

00:49:03.584 --> 00:49:08.113
story because we volunteers love each

00:49:08.113 --> 00:49:10.278
other, because we are together

00:49:10.278 --> 00:49:13.455
in a special way, and we with the guys,

00:49:13.455 --> 00:49:17.059
and they love us, real friendships have

00:49:17.059 --> 00:49:18.858
been born, it's a love story.

00:49:19.462 --> 00:49:22.591
It is these small gestures, these tales

00:49:22.591 --> 00:49:27.798
of everyday life that make our experience

00:49:28.254 --> 00:49:33.343
so special. It is what makes you say:

00:49:33.343 --> 00:49:38.493
"I care about you" It is the most

00:49:38.493 --> 00:49:41.307
precious gift we can take home.

00:49:41.660 --> 00:49:52.886
Ubuntu 
I am because we are

00:49:54.396 --> 00:49:58.278
Despite the closure of the migrant 
centre, the experience of the "Scuolina"

00:49:58.278 --> 00:50:02.118
has not been interrupted and is
continuing in Poggo alla Croce and

00:50:02.118 --> 00:50:06.528
at the COSPE, both for teaching 
and for supporting integration.

00:50:06.528 --> 00:50:11.838
Thanks to the project "Open Laboratory 
of Active Citizenship LACA19" a crowdmap

00:50:11.838 --> 00:50:16.078
based on the Ushahidi software 
has been developed to witness

00:50:16.078 --> 00:50:20.148
and connect the welcoming practices 
at regional, national and European level.

00:50:21.611 --> 00:50:27.521
Filmed between February and September 2019

00:50:28.391 --> 00:50:32.391
Closing credits