Dozens of men, women and children who have featured in the Irish Times New to the Parish series gathered in the Liquor Rooms bar on Wellington Quay in Dublin on Tuesday evening to mark one year since the beginning of the series, which has "given a voice" to the migrant experience in Ireland.
New to the Parish, which was launched in July 2015 on a weekly basis, tells the stories of people who have moved to Ireland over the past decade.
It has featured tales of migration from countries as far apart as China, Argentina, Mali, Mexico, Syria and Romania.
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On Tuesday, all participants in the series were invited to take part in an event to celebrate the series and to discuss what it means to be a migrant in Ireland in 2016.
Razan Ibraheem, who came to Ireland from Syria in 2011 to study at the University of Limerick and was forced to stay due to the conflict in her home country, spoke of the need to transform the perception of what it means to be a refugee.
“People meet me on the street and say, ‘But you couldn’t be a refugee, look at your nice clothes.’
“Syrian refugees come from all backgrounds and religions, Syria is like a piece of a mosaic.”
Flor Sylvester from Venezuela, spoke of the struggle of finding a school that would accept her unbaptised Irish-born daughter.
She called for an education system in the Republic which respects the religious beliefs of all children and their families.
“The policies I envision don’t impose [a] religion different from the one at home.
“It teaches children to respect and interact with people of other faiths, ideas and backgrounds, and where each child feels valued and respected as an individual regardless of their parents’ beliefs,” said Ms Sylvester.
She added that New to the Parish had “given a voice” to the thousands of migrants living in Ireland today and the struggles they encounter in settling into their new home.
Curiosity
Shampa Lahiri, an Australian with an Indian background, described what it felt like arriving in Ireland as a migrant in the mid-1990s.
“When I first backpacked around here in 1997 schoolchildren would stop and stare at me in the street.
“I think I was maybe the first Asian person they had ever seen. They were utterly innocent in their curiosity and utterly charming to me and I was utterly charmed by them.”
Ms Lahiri described the “fear, adventure, persecution, love, sacrifice and hope” that leads millions of people to migrate to a different country and begin a new life.
She advised migrants and refugees in the audience to contribute to the Irish communities they live in and not to become “invisible”.
She said they should fight for a place in Irish society and bring more diversity into the State’s politics, public institutions and media.
“You are valuable, be valuable,” she told the audience. “Contribute to the communities in which you live. But above all else, be proud.
“Not everyone has the guts to buy a one-way ticket. You have courage and determination and you have proven that you can be fearless.”
The event was opened by Irish Times editor Kevin O’Sullivan and daily features editor Róisín Ingle.
It featured music from Discovery Gospel Choir and singers Zeenie Summers and Daniel Ramamoorthy, who have also featured in the series.
New to the Parish is a weekly series that appears in print and online every Wednesday.
You can keep up with the latest from the series on the New to the Parish Facebook page or by following @NewtotheParish on Twitter.
