JRS Malta and FAB! to hold another Human Library this February

Feb 14, 2023

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JRS Malta, in collaboration with trans-national project FAB!, Family-Based care for children in migration, will hold another Human Library offering the public an opportunity for encounter.

Following the Human Library sessions held in 2022 and the good turnout from the general public, JRS Malta is once again offering this chance for guests to come and ‘read’ a snippet from the life of asylum seekers and those who journey with them.

JRS Malta truly believes that the best effort to fight misconceptions, prejudice and divide among the local Maltese population and the persons who have landed on our shores in search of a better life, is through creating a safe space for encounter.

And this is what the Human Library is all about; creating an open environment where the public gets to ‘read’ a chapter in the life of asylum seekers and those people who work with them.

Our upcoming Human Library will be held on 27 February at the Palazzo De La Salle, Society of Arts, in Valletta. The event will kick start at 6pm. The last group will be allowed to enter at 9pm.

We refer to reading only a ‘chapter’ because getting to know someone’s life story takes longer than an encounter of a couple of hours. But we are hoping this is only the start.

Those who wish to attend need to fill a short registration form. We are also asking guests to commit to being respectful to the participants of this exercise. These asylum seekers are going to share difficult moments of their life and we ask everyone to be respectful and understanding.

How will it work?

A number of ‘books’ (asylum seekers and professionals who work with them) will be sitting around the hall. At the very entrance of the event, you will skim through the short biography of each. Then, just as you do at a normal library, you will decide which story you want to read or know better.

Every ‘book’ will sit with no more than three people at one go. We want to keep this as intimate as possible. The idea is to have a safe space, where both the participants and those telling their stories, feel comfortable.

Each encounter will take around 20 minutes. You are free to ask questions or revisit a ‘book’ you already read later on throughout the evening. This is an ongoing event, open between 6pm and 9:30pm, so feel free to pop by anytime.

Once again, we remind you to be respectful to the persons that are sharing their stories.

We hope to see you there!

This event is being done in collaboration with FAB! Family Based Care for Children in Migration, a project Co-funded by the European Union.

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