9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Piera, a resident in Poggio alla Croce

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
In these last few years a lot has changed

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Things were different before, people were simpler

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
They often came into the centre.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Now they stay at home,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
the village is less lived in.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Before we were all concentrated on my shop.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Most of the world,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
most of life took place around it.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
A place to meet, to understand each other,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
maybe argue with different opinions

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
but still have a dialogue. That was life,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
in my view that really was.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Andrea, who conceived the welcoming project

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Poggio alla Croce could be defined

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
as “a small Switzerland”

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Located in a beautiful spot

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
between Chianti and Valdarno

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Residents are busy at work

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and like to collaborate.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
In summer a nice festival is organized

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
attracting people from both valleys

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
When problems arise, like with ice in winter,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
informations flow over the internet.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Looked like and ideal place

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Then in April 2017 the “bomb” went off:

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
thirty migrants to be hosted in the “palace”,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
a former hotel middle of village

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It sounded as if a spaceship full

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
of little black men was about to land

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Piera

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Black men are coming. Black men are coming.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
We are all with our hairs raised,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
very worried, me too to be honest because

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
you hear a lot of good

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
but also bad about these youngsters

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Andrea

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
The strongest reaction, intense and wide,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
was an immediate refusal,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
a “belly” reaction that caused

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
an immediate decision

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to collect signatures against,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
in less than three days

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
230 signatures were collected

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Even though the Poggio’s residents

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
are around 190.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Attilia, a teacher in the the school for migrants

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
A first meeting was held

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
one and half year ago in summer

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
before the migrants arrived,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
so we did not know them

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
They had no face for us, they had no name

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I don’t live in Poggio alla Croce,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I come from a nearby village

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
During the meeting there were

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
some very aggressive people,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I guess they were sincerely scared

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Martin, parson of Poggio alla Croce

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Their reaction was not due to being bad.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Behind there was also a reality

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
that must be told. It must be told that

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
none was pepared because none

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
had been alerted that these foreigner,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
these migrants were coming

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Paolo, a resident in Poggio alla Croce

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Someone started collecting signatures,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and I agreed only because I wanted to know

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
where would these kids be hosted,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
what did they come for then it became

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
clear that this was not the reason

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
they did not want to welcome them

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So I said my signature was extorted

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and was not in agreement any more

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Luana, a resident in Poggio alla Croce

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
They told us

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
“in a year time we’ll remind you of this..

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
we are scared..

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I have an 18months old little girl

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
who won’t be able to walk the streets anymore”

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
But I refused to sign in

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and became the black sheep

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Paolo

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
They are black, and that may be difficult to fathom

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Integration is not easy, not easy.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Also on their side

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Attilia

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
There was a bad feeling around,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
a terrible atmosphere

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
My legs trembled, truly.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I recognized kids that I knew

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
when they were little children.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And now as grown ups they were scared

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and said they did not want the migrants

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
because their life would change,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
it would not be possible

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
anymore to go quietly around in Poggio.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
No more walkabouts but they shouted

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
all this in a really aggressive way..

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and I started to tremble and was unable

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to tell what I meant,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
that I felt very sorry to see children

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
who had grown up together

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
accustomed to sharing…and I remember

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
there were also coloured children

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
in our classes and they all played together

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And now I was frightened

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
by what they had become

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Was more scared of them than

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
of the coming migrants because

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I could sense a rage and violence

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
that really frightened me

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Andrea

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
When the spaceship

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
with its little black men finally landed

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
we managed to organize

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
a first meeting in a room under

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
the church that our parson Martin

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
put at our disposal

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
for the whole project.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Sitting on chairs in a circle

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
all mixed up some of us,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
some of them, we played a bit.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
We sticked a piece of paper on the wall

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and each and one of us started to write

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
“Andrea Formiconi, italian, speaks italian”

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Then casually pointed the felt-pen towards

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
one or the other and they wrote in turn

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Each and one of us wrote his name,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
which country he came from,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
which language he spoke,,,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
A simple exercise that opened

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
a whole world, a universe

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
because it turned out that with

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
fourteen-fifteen of them there were

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
twelve-thrteen languages spoken

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
That some of them were illiterate,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
you could tell by the unlikely way they

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
brandished the feltpen in their hands,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
In fact they did not write but

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
drew their name. At the same time

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
some of them attended school

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and to one exreme there was one kid

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
that had escaped while in his fourth year

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
of Mathematics at university.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
This helps understand the enormous

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
fan of different human stories and situations

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
hiding behind this stereotype that we call

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
with just one name: the migrant..

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
which prompts the image of one

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
little black man, the same, and his

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
standard story.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Absolutely not like that !

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Malo’, a teacher in the school for mugrants

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Three of us that embarked in this adventure

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
of the “little school of Poggio alla Croce”

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
without really knowing what to expect.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
We felt the urge to do something

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to help these youngsters,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and we thought that teaching them

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
italian language was the thing to do

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
also to improve their trust in themselves.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
As we are scared of them blacks,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
they are scared of us whites

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
They are afraid of us.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
The funny thing is that a lot of people

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
were involved who had nothing .

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to do with teaching.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
People like Marcie who is canadian

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
with very little italian but

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
she taught italian.. and Willy

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
who is still with us who reads

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and does dictation

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and anything else with them

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I teach in primary schools

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
on Tuesday when finished

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
With my class, often very tired like last

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
year when I taught in first

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I sit in the car and say to myself

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
“why do you do it ?

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
you should go home to rest or make dinner”

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
then I close my eyes and think

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
“if it is the right thing to do I'll find

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
the missing energies” and there I go

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and afterwards I am happy because you get

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
there and see those smiles with white teeth

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and those white teeth of black people

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
those happy eyes...

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I see Ajan, I see Dedo, the Kurds...

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
waiting for you

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
who thank you for being there,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
who are looking forward

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
for you to teach them something.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(Car noise...)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I arrived here a bit by chance,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I got to know this experience

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
thanks to Andreas, his stories

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
in university classrooms and I decided to

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to come and have a look.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
The question I get asked most often

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
is why I'm doing this, especially because

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
what strikes me about me is the fact

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
that I come from almost 90 kilometres

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
almost two hours by car anyway

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
just to get here.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It's not easy to explain,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
because the reason

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
lies in so many little things:

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
gestures, looks, emotions,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
the feelings you have when

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
you get in touch with these people

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
which in the end are lives

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
are experiences, are worlds

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
with which you come into contact

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and of which you often know nothing.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(Traffic noise...)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(Country noises, chirping...)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(Squeaking bicycle...)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(Background music...)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I go to school in Figline Valdarno

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
every day, On Mondays and Tuesdays

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I go by car but the other days I ride my bike.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I ride my bike. It's not difficult to go,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
but it is difficult to return

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
because it takes an hour and

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
thirty minutes, It's tiring.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
When I was in Africa I didn't go to

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
school and fortunately I found myself in

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Europe and met the people who

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
are helping me

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and enrolled me in school.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
My goal is to learn the Italian language

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I would like to stay in Italy,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I would like to work to help

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
my family in Africa. Therefore

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I have to concentrate on studying,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
it's my goal.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
My name is Madou Koulibaly, I come

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
from Guinea and I'm 20 years old.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I arrived in Italy a year and

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
two months ago, it was a very

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
difficult trip, I can't forget it,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It was very dangerous.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I sacrificed my life

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to seek my fortune in Europe

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and thank God I entered Italy

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
on 13 June 2018

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and I was transferred

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to Poggio alla Croce.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I met some very good people who

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
treated me like one of their own,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
they are like my parents here,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
not only me but all the Africans

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
who live in Poggio alla Croce.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I would like to continue studying,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
if there is a possibility,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I'd like to study and learn

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
a job, for example a welder.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(Noise spring water, chirping...)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Italy saved me in the sea,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
in Italy I went to school

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and I would like to continue studying,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I don't know what will happen afterwards.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Poggio alla Croce is my village.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
The path is chaotic,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
one cannot expect to follow

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
a preordained thread:

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
it would kill this kind of school.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So you have to follow the wind.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
An example would be when

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Samba had written the curriculum

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
on the computer,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
then of course you try to help:

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
"Samba, what does this mean?

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
What's this...?"

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Then we read:

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
"driving experience", so I ask:

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
"Samba, what did you drive?"

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
He light up immediately and says

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
"Cow!"

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and a whole other discussion

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
started from there

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
about how things change over time,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
how they change in Africa,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
how they change here.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
This is an example of digression.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It's a people-centred school,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
essentially.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(Soft music, dialogue in the background..)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
We all have attics full of old computers

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and we don't know what to do with them.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It's a problem because we have to take them

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to the eco-center and so we've been

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
spreading this information:

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
"Do you have an old computer?

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
You don't know what to do with it,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
is that a problem for you?

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Instead of giving it to the

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
recycling centre, give it to us,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
we install a version the Linux

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
operating system, a lightweight version

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
that fits into old computers

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and easily "resurrects" them.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
The Ubuntu operating system

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
is so called because it is a concept

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
from southern Africa and

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Nelson Mandela in a beautiful

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
video that we used

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
for a work with the students,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
describes it with a little story:

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
"Once upon a time, when a wayfarer

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
arrived in a village and he was

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
tired, thirsty and hungry, no one would

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
ever ask him any question,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
they simply brought him something to drink

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and food. This is Ubuntu, that is

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
thinking about the other in the knowledge

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
that this creates a community

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
that lives well if we all do that."

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Ubuntu is a great African philosophy,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
a great African thought...

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
it's about getting to the help

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
it starts with the fact that we're all

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
brothers, if I help one person

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
that person can help

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
another person close to me,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
therefore a general connection

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
of society in that we all consider

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
ourselves brothers and sisters.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
What happened in Poggio alla Croce

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
is Ubuntu, it's definitely

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
authentic Ubuntu.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(Chorus of African children...)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I think that following a principle

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
where helping someone will help me

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
in turn is good for both, better than

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
fighting with each other,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
even though in fight wins may be

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
happier than the loser.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
This principle guides my whole life

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
since I started reasoning I have always

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
used the time I had available in social activities.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
But not for “goodism”, not because

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I am good and consequently must do good,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
help others, help beggars, no.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Maybe I am led by selfishness,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I think I earn something this way

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and so live a better life, be serene.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
You get a lot of rip-offs, but not like

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
those you get When fighting and losing.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
More like opportunities that leave

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
a bitter taste in our mouth but do not create

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
big problems. There were racist

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
symptoms around and that is way

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I decided to get involved but basically

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
it was my way of doing things: I am a migrant

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
myself in Poggio alla Croce, moving from town

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to the country.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I choosed to and almost from start

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
it was natural to decide joining this association.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It is a way of living, it is normality,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
no heroism, I think everybody

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
can understand this.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
When I hear it, the word Ubuntu has an impact

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
because it means “humanity”.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
In jewish religion we have an expression,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
“tikkum olam”, that literally means

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
“fixing the world”.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And I noticed how relationships

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
developed here; it is really beautiful,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
because people one by one are slowly

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
“fixing the world” and show humanity.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
We must concentrate on this positive part

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
of the world because if we don’t,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
if we do nothing, we are doomed to fail.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
For me coming here to Poggio is a little thing

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
but it means a lot in my life.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
This idea of Ubuntu, to re-generate computers,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
objects tools that were doomed to be

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
thrown away, is what inspired also

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
this community to act and slowly

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
re-generate itself. This is what means

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
the motto “We need you”

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Our local community was re-generated

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
by your arrival, thanks to your spaceship

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
with little black men, because it injected

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
into us a new need to co-hoperate, to leave

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
our homes and setties, forget about tv,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
get out and try to solve together a problem

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
for the benefit of the whole community.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(words from a malian rap song, music in headphones)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I am Samba and I come from Mali,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I am an artist

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
But before when I sang with my friends

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
my family was against me making music,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
but I love it.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
In 2016 I went first to Algeria then to Libia

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Then I arrived here two years ago.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I have a complicated life,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I would like to be an artist

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
a rapper like many italians (Ghali, Sfera Ebbasta..)

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I would like to do what they do

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I don’t really know what happened

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
but we have all changed

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I found out they changed in relation to us,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
in the begining they would just pass by,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
just give us a little smile but when they

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
realised we really liked them…

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I cannot speak for all, but for people like me.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
When we see a new one we stop him

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
with a “ehi”, and if he is tall tell him

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to bend down or we can’t reach him, and he

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
calls us and we say “grandmas and grandpas”

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and he replies “grandpa,grandma”,,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
We speak italian so we try to make

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
ourselves understood and when we see

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
they reaaly don’t understand we gesture

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
like this..to make them bend down

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And so they learn and when they pass

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
they ask “nonna, need help ?”..

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
”no, not today, tomorrow”.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Some know some english and so I tell them

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
“tomorrow” and they understand.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I always said I have No room at home but if

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I did I would happily take one in One, two,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
depends on how many I could take in

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
If the house were mine, because in my view

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
they also need to be understood, to feel

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
the good not just through a smile. There are

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
essential things in the life of all, but they

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
leave their families flee from

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
very bad systems, suffer hunger.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Maybe we are unable to give them

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
these things We are just two or three that

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
are really fond of them straight from our

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
hearts not from our mouths

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And they can feel it, as soon as they see

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
us they come for a kiss, for some food,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
for biscuits, as with a little child that

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
needs to be taught to speak.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Some we see more often and there is a contact

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
We spend time but is not wasted time,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
it is good time. People who saw us doing

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
that in the beginning were critical

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
But now they say “it is true they make

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
themselves loved, but how did you do it ?”

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
How ?, well we talk to them!

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And soon or later they understand…

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Slowly things got more stable.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
These kids are very nice

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
They hurt nobody, they salute everybody,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
they pass they call you, we reply,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
at least I do, others won’t.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
The village is quiet now,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
it showed the worst of itself because

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
misleading informations help produce

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
bad reactions. Then you learn, you see, you

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
live and living with them is also nice.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
The way I see it, these kids were like jailed

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
without this group of people that taught

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
them italian and other things ..

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
what would they do ? Lock up thirty kids

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
in a CAS, what for ? For nothing I think,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
If they are not made active

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
what can they do ?

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
They are all young kids in their twenties….

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
what can they do ?

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
If they do something, if it is possible

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to make them do something, work, play..

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
then it is different. They can be useful

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
but you must train them, let them in,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
something impossible to do in two-three months

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Then you have to overcome distrust.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Seeing a black man by your side

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
has some effects. But in the end it means

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
nothing. If you learn to know him he is

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
like me after all Even if I don’t know you

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
we share the same opinion

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
This is logical I think

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
The first village I saw after entering Europe

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
was Poggio alla Croce

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I will never forget because they gave

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
a new life, an unforgettable experience:

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
the people, the joy, they gave me a respect

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
for society, from day one when they

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
took me around to look for a job, to take

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
the driving licence, to school..

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and I thought “look, these people ask

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
nothing of you, but give you a lot,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
a new life..I must give something back”

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and thought it would be good to go on

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
with them, helping them also phisically”

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
In my life I will never forget this village and

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000


9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
the people who know me as well,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
My family,even if not in Italy,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
they know Poggio alla Croce!

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It is a big joy for them too,and in my view

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
if they ever meet an italian or european

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
person they will respect them because

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
they have given a good thing, a new life

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to their son.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
In future I would like to help with the school,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I don’t speak italian well but I could help

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
with the Pakistani who don’t speak english

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and have not studied. I could be

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
an interpreter between them and an italian

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
explaining the rules and other things.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It would help them but also one way

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to give someting back to society, to the village.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
You are integrated in this society but now

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
you are teaching other peopleto integrate in society

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
so that they can do good new things.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I have a lot to learn still, but people

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
from Poggio gave me a nice life, something

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
difficult to explain in words, but I will

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
always try to give something back to this

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
unforgettable, beautiful village.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
This initiative (the school) helped people

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
who did not know each other to get in touch,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
collaborate, become friends..Not only the migrants

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
have a school for italian and mathematics

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
but we all from the village have learnt to mix,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
live together and it is much better

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Something else I won’t ever forget is

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
the second day I visited the school, it was

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
the first birthday of the mythical Duccio,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
our mascot. At a point during the mini-buffet

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
his morher had prepared for us

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and the kids they open a little paper bag

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and and pull out a little cart made in

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
coloured wood, obviously home made

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
as one of those things I could find

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
in my grandma’s attic. It was made

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
of wood pieces assembled and with a string

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to pull it around on wheels,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
really a well done object

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It was handmade by them and Duccio

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
really liked it because among many toys

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
in the house, fantastic toys that play

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
a tune, sing a song, shout, Duccio loved

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
immediately this simple wooden chart,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and he played with it without throwing it

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to the ground, as he does with other toys

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
he keeps in his hands for thirty seconds

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
then throws them away. Maybe it was

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
because since he was born me and my

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
girlfried have tried to integrate Duccio

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
with these kids, so that he could live

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
this experience as normal, as if they were

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
our relatives,our friends,our brothers.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And now when my son sees them he smiles

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and goes towards them. He is now

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
18 months old and is practically

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
the mascot of the centre. When they

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
see him they call “Duscio, Duscio..”,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
you can tell their face opens up in smile,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and this makes me really happy. I know

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
it may sound trivial but I want my child

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to be a citizen of the world

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
not just of Poggio alla Croce.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Fantastic, but how does it work Madou ?

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
You are far away I must try to hit,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I must stay away to hit

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Who hits first wins ?

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
When I cannot hit then it is her turn,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
then we go around.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And who hits is the winner ? Yes

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(Madou explains in his language

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
the recipe for bread, oil and salt).

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
My name is Omar, I come from Senegal.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I have been In Italy for two years now.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I arrived in Poggio alla Croce and

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I am happy, I met lots of people,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
they teach you some italian and we have

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
become friends. I go to school also

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to learn how to prune, I collected wine

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
grapes and olives. They helped me find

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
a good job, and I have found a mother and

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
a father..I only miss my brothers but

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
my new parents are Paola and Gabriele,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
they are very good people, like everyone

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
else in Poggio alla Croce.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
When a stranger arrives here leaving

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
his country still has nostalgia. He thinks

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
where he goes he may be welcome with

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
a smile. When he is met by refusal is a

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
very difficult moment, a very sad one.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
We are all strangers to some others,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I came here in 2000 Now 19 years have

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
passed and I have become parson

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
in Poggio alla Croce.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
They make you think as if they have taken

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
their life destiny in their own hands.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Obviously this transformation is not

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
just theirs, is probably one of the most

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
important aspects it is wrong to focus

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
just on “them”. Things really work

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
when the context accepts change

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
This explains the positive reaction of the

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
population. Starting form our aged

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
fellow-citizen who may be were terrifed

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
at the beginning, during those horrible

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
early meetings… Now they know they can

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
call on them when the lumberjacks

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
discharge 10 quintals of wooden logs in

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
front of the house that have to be taken

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
into the garden or inside the house, they

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
can call these “big guys” as they say,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and these kids obviously do the job in ten

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
minutes, and maybe are offered a cappuccino

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
or given a little money. This way a normal

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
way of life was recuperated Healthy normality

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
that makes a population really civilized.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And among other things this is what really

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
moves me, the people that are with me

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
now and who have involved me in this

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
adventure, two in particular who have

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
started this adventure, are the same two

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
who have welcomed me twentysix years

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
ago whenI arrived in San Polo.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
This is important for me, because mine

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
was a really beautiful experience that

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I want to help others,them, to live.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
“water is coming, master” “ok”

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
“theese are three and half kilos” “ yes it is ok

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
“what is the name of this dish ?” “ Mafe”

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
“How do you do this dish, just meat,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
vegetables ?”

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
“meat, vegetable, tomatoes peanuts butter”

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
“how do you do it, you must clean, cut”

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
“ok kids I let you work, while I look on

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and help you”

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
“what is this white thing ? “ Bantara ?”

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
“and how do you cook it ? You need

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
long time “

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
“in Senegal yes, I don’t know how

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to cook it in Europe..”

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
“the more fresh it is the quicker it cooks,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
if old it takes longer”

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
This kind of Barbiana for migrants

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
at Villa Viviana in Poggio alla Croce is about

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
about to close. Today all is silent since

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
these kids who had brought back some

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
life to this under-populated village

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
in the past two years have been obliged

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to leave. They went away in haste

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
without alerting anybody A few of their

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
things have remained here.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
The cooperative Cristoforo which was

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
running the centre must give up because

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
with a budget limited to 21 euros

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(against 35 as before) per each migrant

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
they are closing down five centres out

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
of 17.. and this is only the beginning

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
because the situation is not financially

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
sustainable any more.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
At Poggio alla Croce, in the neighborough

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
of Figline e Incisa, some thirty migrants

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
had arrived among distrust and protest

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
ff the few people living there..Then

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
everything changed, many were adopted,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
someone decided to set up a school

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to teach them italian, but also to cook,

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
prune olives. A distinctive experience of

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
integration was born And lived on until

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
today when they were forced to leave

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
moving to another centre

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
in Sesto Fiorentino.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Today was the last day of study in Poggio

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
alla Croce, it was a school where

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
foreigners could learn a lot of things it

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
was the school where we have learnt all

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
that we need in italian, in english, and

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
above all some italian culture.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
In this moment it is very difficult to go

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
away from the residents of Poggio alla

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Croce, to leave our teachers We are very

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
sorry but have no choice, there is not

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
enough words to say how good it was

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to live together with you. You must be

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
proud for what you have done and are still

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
doing. You have created an incredible story

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
which cannot be cancelled in our little

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
village where humanity is respected even

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
though for some people to live together

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
with african kids is boring or a sin.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
With you it was never like that, always

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
smiling, only nice words, never bad words

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
nor distinction against the colour of

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
our skin. We have been lucky to live

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
with your one moment in our travelling.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
After studying in Poggio we have

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
understood that each and everyone must own

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
his destiny. Thank you for having taught

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
us the right approach how to behave

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
properly in Europe, how to distance

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
ourselves from begging and delinquent

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
behaviours. I will never forget you.

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Warm greetings