Spring 2017, in the province of Florence, life in Poggio alla Croce is turned upside down by the announcement of the arrival of a group of migrants. Between fear, anger and indifference, inhabitants are looking for a solution. (Background music and kitchen noises) I AM BECAUSE WE ARE Piera, a resident in Poggio alla Croce In these last few years a lot has changed Things were different before people were different They often came into the centre. Now they stay at home, the village is less lived in. Before we were all in my shop. Most of the world, most of life took place around it. A place to meet, to understand each other, maybe argue with different opinions but still have a dialogue. It was easier it was life... I mean it was life Andreas, project creator Poggio alla Croce could be defined as “a small Switzerland” Located in a beautiful spot between Chianti and Valdarno Residents are active and cooperative In summer a nice festival is organized attracting people from both valleys When problems arise, like ice in winter, informations flow over the internet. Looked like and ideal place Then in April 2017 the “bomb”: thirty migrants coming in the “palace”, a former hotel in the village It sounded as if a spaceship full of little black men was about to land (tense music) Black men are coming, black men are coming We are all with our hairs raised, very worried, me too to be honest because Even if you hear a lot of good but also bad about these youngsters The strongest reaction, intense and wide, was an immediate refusal, a “belly” reaction that caused an immediate decision to collect signatures against, in less than three days 230 signatures were collected even if we are some 190 Attilia, a teacher in migrants school A first meeting was held one and half year ago in summer before the migrants arrived, so we did not know them They had no face for us, they had no name and there was a meeting in the village I don’t live in Poggio alla Croce, I come from a nearby village During the meeting there were some very aggressive people, I guess they were sincerely scared Martin, parson of Poggio alla Croce Their reaction was not due to being bad. Behind there was also a reality that must be told. It must be told that none was pepared because none had been alerted that these foreigner, these migrants were coming Noise of iron hammering Paolo, a resident in Poggio alla Croce Someone started collecting signatures, and I agreed only because I wanted to know where would these kids be hosted, what did they come for then it became clear that this was not the reason they did not want to welcome them So I said my signature was extorted and was not in agreement any more Luana, a resident in Poggio alla Croce They told us in a year time we’ll remind you of this.. we are scared.. I have an 18months old little girl who won’t be able to walk outside anymore They asked us to sign against but I refused and became the black sheep... They are simply black and this is not easy to accept Integration is not easy, not easy. Also on their side There was a bad feeling around, an awful atmosphere My legs trembled, really. I recognized kids that I knew when they were little children. And now as grown ups they were scared and said they did not want the migrants because their life would change, it would not be possible anymore to go quietly around in Poggio. No more walkabouts but they shouted all this in a really aggressive way.. and I started to tremble and was unable to tell what I meant, that I felt very sorry to see children who had grown up together and were used to share… and I remember there were also coloured children in our classes and all played together and had now become so And now I was more scared of them than of the incoming migrants. I could sense a rage and violence that really frightened me (laundry noise) When the spaceship with the little black men had actually landed we managed to organize a first circle in a room under the church that our parson Martin put at our disposal for the rest of the story we organized a first circle where we played, by arranging ourselves on the chairs in a completely random way, so mixed up, a little bit of them and a little bit of us. We sticked a piece of paper on the wall and each and one of us started to write Andrea Formiconi, italian, speaks italian Then casually pointed the felt-pen towards one or the other and they wrote in turn Each and one of us wrote his name, which country he came from, which language he spoke,,, This simple game basically opened up a whole world, a universe because it turned out that with fourteen-fifteen of them there were twelve-thrteen languages spoken Then we discovered illiterates, you could tell by the unlikely way they held the marker... In fact they did not write the name but drew it. At the same time some of them attended school and to one extreme there was a guy that had escaped while in his fourth year of mathematics at university. This helps understand the enormous range of stories and different human situations hiding behind this stereotype which we call with univocal names: the migrant.. which prompts the image of the little black man, always the same, and his standard story. Absolutely not! (gentle music) (kitchen noises) Malò I think that the spark that triggered all this craving for school was a Malian boy, Ali, who had spotted me because we had spoken a little French and one day I saw him arrive at my house I don't live in the village, there is about a mile of dirt road. he arrived alone, with paper and pencil, telling me: «Io voglio imparare l'italiano». We are three guys who embarked on this 'little school' adventure in Poggio alla Croce without really knowing what to expect. We felt the urge to do something to help these guys, and we thought that teaching them italian language was the thing to do also to improve their trust in themselves. As we are scared of them blacks, they are scared of us whites This has to be understood. They are afraid, they are afraid of us. The funny thing is that a lot of people were involved who had nothing . to do with teaching. People like Marcie who is canadian with very little italian but she taught italian.. and Willy (a Peruvian resident) who is still with us who reads and does dictation and anything else with them. I teach in primary schools on Tuesday when finished With my class, often very tired like last year when I taught in first I sit in the car and say to myself “why do you do it ? I'm crazy... you should go home to rest or make dinner” then I close my eyes and think “if it is the right thing to do I'll find the missing energies” and there I go and afterwards I am happy because you get there and see those smiles with white teeth, peculiar of black people those happy eyes... I see Ajan, I see Dedo, the Kurds... waiting for you who thank you for being there, thanking you for being there, looking forward for you to teach them something. (Car noise...) Laura, Andreas' student I arrived here a bit by chance, I got to know this experience thanks to Andreas, his stories in university classrooms and I decided to to come and have a look. The question I get asked most often is why I'm doing this, especially because what strikes me about me is the fact that I come from almost 90 kilometres almost two hours by car anyway just to get here. It's not easy to explain, because the reason lies in so many little things: gestures, looks, emotions, the feelings you have when you get in touch with these people which in the end are lives are experiences, are worlds with which you come into contact and of which you often know nothing. (Traffic noise...) (Country noises, chirping...) (Squeaking bicycle...) (Background music...) Madou, student of the school I go to school in Figline Valdarno every day, On Mondays and Tuesdays I go by car but the other days I ride my bike. It's not difficult to go, but it is difficult to return because it takes an hour and thirty minutes, it's difficult, It's tiring. When I was in Africa I didn't go to school and fortunately I found myself in Europe and met the people who are helping me and enrolled me in school. My goal is to learn the Italian language I would like to stay in Italy, I would like to work to help my family in Africa. Therefore I have to concentrate on studying, it's my goal. My name is Madou Koulibaly, I come from Guinea and I'm 20 years old. I arrived in Italy a year and two months ago, it was a very difficult trip, I can't forget it, It was very dangerous. I sacrificed my life to seek my fortune in Europe and thank God I entered Italy on 13 June 2018 and I was transferred to Poggio alla Croce. I met some very good people who treated me like one of their own, they are like my parents here, not only me but all the Africans who live in Poggio alla Croce. I would like to continue studying, if there is a possibility, I'd like to study and learn a job, for example a welder. (Noise spring water, chirping...) Italy saved me in the sea, in Italy I went to school and I would like to continue studying, I don't know what will happen afterwards. Poggio alla Croce is my village. The path is chaotic, one cannot expect to follow a preordained thread: it would kill this kind of school. So you have to follow the wind. An example would be when Samba had written the curriculum on the computer, then of course you try to help: "Samba, what does this mean? What's this...?" Then we read: "driving experience", so I ask: "Samba, what did you drive?" He light up immediately and says "Cow!" and a whole other discussion started from there about how things change over time, how they change in Africa, how they change here. This is an example of digression. It's a people-centred school, essentially (Soft music, dialogue in the background..) We all have attics full of old computers and we don't know what to do with them. It's a problem because we have to take them to the eco-center and so we've been spreading this information: "Do you have an old computer? You don't know what to do with it, is that a problem for you? Instead of giving it to the recycling centre, give it to us, we install a free software operating system, i.e. Linux a lightweight version of Ubuntu that fits into old computers and easily "resurrects" them. The Ubuntu operating system is so called because it is a concept from southern Africa and Nelson Mandela in a beautiful video that we used for a work with the students, describes it with a little story: "Once upon a time, when a traveller arrived in a village and he was tired, thirsty and hungry, no one would ever ask him any question, they simply brought him something to drink and food. This is Ubuntu, that is thinking about the other being aware that this creates a community that lives well if we all do that." Ubuntu is a great African philosophy, a great African thought... that before getting to the help it starts with the fact that we're all brothers, if I help one person that person can help another person close to me, therefore a general connection of society in that we all consider ourselves brothers and sisters. What happened in Poggio alla Croce is Ubuntu, it's definitely authentic Ubuntu. (Chorus of African children...) I think that following a principle where helping someone will help me in turn is good for both, better than fighting with each other, even though in fight wins may be happier than the loser. This principle guides my whole life since I started reasoning I have always used the time I had available in social activities. But not for “goodism”, not because I am good and consequently must do good, help others, help beggars, no. Maybe I am led by selfishness, I think I earn something this way and so live a better life, be serene. You get a lot of rip-offs, but not like those you get when fighting and losing. More like opportunities that leave a bitter taste in our mouth but do not create big problems. (Opportunities) that I know I must seize. There were problems of an almost racist nature in Poggio alla Croce, so to speak, and I stepped in for that too. It was my way of doing things. I'm a migrant myself in Poggio alla Croce, moving from town to the country. I choosed to and almost from start And I tried to integrate myself into the association. here in Poggio alla Croce, because it was natural for me. It is a way of living, no heroism, it's normal I think everybody can understand this. Marcie, canadian teacher When I hear the word Ubuntu it strikes according with me because it means “humanity”. And in hebrew religion we have a word which I just learned “tikkum olam”, which means healing the world. So I see how they connect together and it's really quite beautiful, because slowly slowly people are one by one healing the world and show humanity. We must concentrate on this positive part of the world because if we don’t, if we do nothing, we are doomed. So for me, coming here is a small small thing but it has a lot of meaning in my life This idea of Ubuntu, this idea of refurbishing computers, objects tools that were doomed to be thrown away, is what inspired also this community to act and slowly to re-generate itself. This is what actually means our motto “We need you”. That motto, in fact, means just that. Our local community was re-generated by your arrival, thanks to your spaceship with you, little black men, because it generated into us a new need to co-hoperate, to leave our homes and our sofas, forget about tv, get out trying to solve together a problem for the benefit of the whole community. Samba, student (words from a malian rap song, music in headphones) I am Samba and I come from Mali, I am an artist but before when I sang with my friends my family was against me making music, but I love it so much. In 2016 I went first to Algeria then also to Libia Then I arrived here two years ago. I have a complicated life, I would like to be an artist a rapper like many italians (Ghali, Sfera Ebbasta..) I would like to do what they do Luana, a resident I don’t really know what happened but we have all changed I found out they changed in relation to us in the begining they would just pass by, just give us a little smile but when they realised we really liked them… I cannot speak for all, but for people like me. When we see a new one we stop him with a “ehi”, and if he is tall tell him to bend down or we can’t reach him, and he calls us and we say “grandmas and grandpas” and he replies “grandpa,grandma”, We speak italian so we try to make ourselves understood and when we see they reaaly don’t understand we gesture like this..to make them bend down And so they learn and when they pass they ask “nonna, need help ?”.. ”no, not today, tomorrow”. Some know some english and so I tell them “tomorrow” and they understand. Yes, but if you knew the story about "tomorrow"... Bloody hell! I always said I have no room at home but if I did I would happily take one or two, depends on how many I could take in If the house were mine, because in my view they also need to be understood they need to feel the good not just through a smile... There are other essential things in life of all, especially in their case, they leave their families and flee from very bad systems, suffer hunger... ...many things... to come in Italy they faced... and so on... Maybe we are able to give them this things, we are just two or three that are really fond of them straight from our hearts not just from our mouths And they can feel it, as soon as they see us they come for a kiss, for some food, for biscuits, as with a little child that needs to be taught to speak. With those we see more often, we got this contact, so we spend time but it's not wasted time, it's good time Therefore... people who saw us doing that in the beginning were critical but now they say “it is true they make themselves loved, but how did you do it ?” How ? Well we talk to them! Sooner or later they understand… Slowly things got more stable, these guys are very nice they don't bother anyone, they greet everyone, they pass they call you, we reply, at least I do, others won’t. The village is quiet now, it showed the worst of itself because misleading informations help produce bad reactions. I mean... Then you learn things, you see them, you live them because in the end it's about leaving with them, isn't it? and it's also nice. The way I see it, these guys were jailed they are locked in there... without this group of people that taught them italian and other things .. what could they do? I mean... If you close thirty guys in a shelter.... What for ? What's the use? it seems to me that it does not help anything If they are not made active, they are all young, 20 years old guys what are they supposed to do ? If they do something, if it is possible to make them do something, work, play.. then it is different. They can be useful but you must train them, let them in, something impossible to do in two-three months Since then you have to overcome distrust, seeing a black man by your side has some effects - it has to be said. But in the end this means nothing in the end he's like me, I mean... You learn to know learn him, he's a guy. But even if I'm with you, who don't know you may be we share the same opinion; it seems logical to me. (Car noise) Sibghat, student The first village I saw after entering Europe was Poggio alla Croce I will never forget because they gave a new life, an unforgettable experience: the people, the joy, they gave me a respect for society, from day one when they took me around to look for a job, to take the driving licence, to school.. and I thought “look, these people ask nothing of you, but give you a lot, indeed a life, a new life (music in the bar) Hi anna... Ciao Sibi! I have to give them something back so I thought, all right, it can be a good thing that I go along with them, helping them also phisically” In my life I will never forget this village and the people who know me, as well, My family,even if not in Italy, they know Poggio alla Croce! It is a big joy for them too, and in my view if they ever meet an italian or european person they will respect them because they have given a good thing, a new life to their son. In future I would like to help with the school, I don’t speak Italian well but I could help with the Pakistani who don’t speak english and have not studied. I could be an interpreter between them and an italian explaining the rules and other things. It would help them but also one way to give something back to society, to the village. You are integrated in this society but now you are teaching other people to integrate in society so that they can do good new things. I have a lot to learn still, but people from Poggio gave me a nice life, something difficult to explain in words, but I will always try to give something back to this unforgettable, beautiful village. This initiative (the school) helped people who did not know each other to get in touch, collaborate, become friends.. Not only the migrants have a school for italian and mathematics but we all from the village have learnt to mix, live together and it is much better. Another memory that I have and I think I will never forget is the second day that I came back to the school and it was the birthday of the great Duccio, our mascot. He was one year old and at a certain point during the mini buffet that his mum had prepared for us the boys opened a bag and pulled out a little wooden cart, all coloured and you could see that it was homemade, the kind that I could find in my grandmother's attic. They were pieces of wood assembled with this rope attached to pull the cart along with wheels it was really well made. Claudio, resident, father of Duccio It was handcrafted by them and the gift was really appreciated by Duccio because among the many toys here at home, fantastic toys that play, sing, shout, this simple wooden cart made with pieces of wood and buttons... he liked it immediately and played with it without knocking it on the ground as he does with other toys after thirty seconds of of holding it in his hands and throwing it away. Also because, maybe, since when he was a baby, as soon as he was born, we tried, both me and my partner, to integrate Duccio together with these guys, without letting him live this experience as if it was something outstanding but as if they were our relatives, our friends, our brothers, when he sees them he laughs and goes to meet them. You know, my son is just 18 months old... He has practically become the mascot of the shelter because every time they see him they call him: "Duscio, Duscio" you can see that when there is "Duscio" they smile... and and I am really happy about that. It's a cliché, but I want my son to become a citizen of the world, not a citizen of Poggio alla Croce. So... everything's fine... and work? (Dialogues not intelligible between Claudio and Salif, student...) Duscio! Hello Duscio... And bread? Bread? Bru (Madou explains the recipe for bread, oil and salt in his own language) cocò...? bru, cocò... And oil? tulù bru, tulù, cocò... So: bru, tulu, cocò! You are good! Yeah, good. (Laundry noises...) My name is Omar and I come from Senegal, I have been in Italy for two years. I've arrived in Poggio alla Croce and I'm happy, I've met many people. they teach a bit of Italian and I became friends with these people I go to school, I did the grape harvest and the olive picking. They helped me to find a good job, I found a mother and a father, I only miss my brothers but my mother and my father are close to me, they are Paola and Gabriele. They are very good, all of them in Poggio alla Croce. (Pruning noise...) When a foreigner comes here and leaves his homeland, he still has this nostalgia, he believes that where he goes he will perhaps find a welcome, a smile. When he comes and finds rejection it is a moment of great difficulty, a sadness. We are all foreigners to someone else, I too am a foreigner and I arrived here in 2000 and now 19 years have passed and I am here as a priest in Poggio alla Croce. They give the idea that they have somehow taken the destiny of their lives back into their own hands. The transformation of course, and this is perhaps one of the significant aspects, is not just about them: it is always wrong to focus on 'them'. Things work when the context allows itself to be changed and in this sense this is a positive reaction of the population. Old ladies who were perhaps terrified in those famous, awful meetings at the beginning can now call them, when the woodcutter unloads a ton of wood in front of their house and for them there is the problem of taking it to the garden, bringing it inside... and so, as they say, they call a couple of these "big guys" and say "Will you bring it inside?" and clearly these guys do the job in ten minutes and they maybe pay them a cappuccino or give them some money. In this way a normal life has been recovered, it is healthy normality that makes up the real civilisation of a population. And by the way, and this moves me, the people who are now with me and who have involved me in this adventure, two in particular, two women who started this adventure, are the same people who welcomed me twenty-six years ago when I arrived here in San Polo. And this is important for me, because it was a beautiful experience that I had and that I want to give to others, to them. What is the name of this dish? Mafe How do you make it? Just meat, vegetables...? How do you manage this dish? Meat, some vegetables... tomato... Peanut... Peanut butter Good... .opala...show him, show him... Ah! Is this opala? Yes, this is opala. (undecipherable dialogue) How do you do it, do you have to clean, cut? Yes, clean, cut... Good! Bravo! I'll let you guys work while I watch and help you. What is this white thing? In Poular: "Bantara" and how do you cook it? A long time... Does it take a long time? yes, it takes a while... I don'tknow... In Senegal yes, I don't know in Europe... it's too hard ah you don't know... (undecipherable dialogue) ...because if it is fresh it cooks very quickly if it is old it takes longer... (Music, kitchen noises...) This sort of migrants' Barbiana at Villa Viviana in Poggio alla Croce closes. Today there is a great silence since these young people who had brought life back to the depopulated village two years ago were forced to leave. (Music...) They left in a hurry without warning, some things are still there. The Cristoforo cooperative, which ran the centre, is leaving because its budget, reduced from 35 to 21 euros per migrant, has already had to close 5 out of 17 centres and this is only the beginning: the situation is no longer financially sustainable. Some thirty migrants arrived in Poggio alla Croce, in the municipality of Figline and Incisa, two years ago amidst the mistrust and protests of the few inhabitants of the village. But then everything changed some adopted them, some decided o improvise a school, to teach them how to cook or prune olive trees... The result was a unique experience of integration until now, when all of a sudden they were forced to move to another centre in Sesto Fiorentino. (gentle music) Today was the last day of study at Poggio alla Croce, it was a school where foreigners learn a lot of things, it was the school where we learned everything we needed Italian, English and above all Italian culture. At this time it is very difficult to be away from the inhabitants of Poggio alla Croce or to be away from our teachers. We are very sorry but we have not chosen, we tell you that we do not have many words to say because living with you has been very beautiful. You must be proud of yourselves for all that you have done and are still doing: you have created an incredible and unforgettable history in your little village, a village where humanity is respected a lot. For some people, living with African boys is a bore or a sin. But with you it was not like that, always with smiles, nice words without swearing or distinction of skin. We were lucky to live with you in this journey. After the study in Poggio we understood that each of us must be the master of our own destiny. Thank you for teaching us a good attitude how to behave in Europe, thank you for making us understand that we should not be like people who are delinquents or beggars I will never forget you, warm regards.... In my opinion, this story of the Poggio, of the little school, is really a love story because we volunteers love each other, because we are together in a special way, and we with the guys, and they love us, real friendships have been born, it's a love story. It is these small gestures, these tales of everyday life that make our experience so special. It is what makes you say: "I care about you" It is the most precious gift we can take home. Ubuntu I am because we are Despite the closure of the migrant centre, the experience of the "Scuolina" has not been interrupted and is continuing in Poggo alla Croce and at the COSPE, both for teaching and for supporting integration. Thanks to the project "Open Laboratory of Active Citizenship LACA19" a crowdmap based on the Ushahidi software has been developed to witness and connect the welcoming practices at regional, national and European level. Filmed between February and September 2019 Closing credits