In this deeply personal reflection, author Nyayich Jal Gil, describes her experience as a refugee with a chronic medical condition living in Cairo, Egypt. She comments on the many challenges she and others in her situation have faced acquiring medication and securing support from doctors and NGOs, and how gaps in support affect physical and mental health.
Monterrey, Mexico 2021
In this deeply personal piece, architect and Mexican architectural history researcher Juan Manuel Casas García reflects on internal displacement and migration in Mexico driven largely by narco-violence, as well as migration to and integration within Mexican cities by those originating from outside of Mexico. His observations are rooted in Monterrey’s urban spaces and architecture, as well as his own upbringing in Mexico City and experience living in Monterrey.
Lowell, Massachusetts, USA
In this gorgeously written piece, Joseph Zorokong teases out the critical role more established immigrant communities have in supporting newcomers, reflecting on his family’s own refugee experience in Lowell, Massachusetts. In this diverse city, Zorokong examines the small but growing African community, their unique challenges in reaching resources and integration, and the process through which they tend their dual identities as immigrants and Americans.
Kampala, Uganda
Personal relationships and understanding between refugees and their hosts can often be the basis for sustainable integration of refugees. In this report, author Nyende Keith Mark discusses an arts-oriented project in Kampala which brought together refugee artists living in Nakivale settlement and Ugandan artists to build relationships and share skills, creating dialogue between refugees and hosts and aiding in refugee integration.
San Miguel, El Salvador
San Miguel, El Salvador is a hub for migrants from across the region. And, often times, it is a shared faith, namely Catholicism and Protestantism, that links newcomers and locals together. In this article, Jocsan Blanco and Fernanda Escobar explore how churches go beyond spiritual support in aiding migrants—from helping them meet basic needs, find jobs, feel part of a supportive social network, and more—a testament to the power of faith organizations in facilitating migrants’ social integration.