Switzerland - IOM and the City of Paris will today inaugurate a photo exhibition: “i am a migrant: Stories of Migration, Portraits of Parisians”.

Designed in partnership with the city to mark International Migrants Day on 18 December, the exhibition aims to pay tribute to migrants and refugees living in Paris and highlight their contribution to the city.

“Over one billion people in the world are migrants. But negative perceptions about migration persist and are usually based on prejudice and misinformation. Providing a counter-narrative requires a concerted effort; one in which the people themselves tell their stories, unfiltered and unspun,” said IOM France Head of Office Sara Abbas.

By bringing a human and diverse face to migration, the exhibition gives voice to those who chose Paris to start new lives. It allows them to share their insights about living in the city and its hospitality. Fifteen portraits are exhibited: they include a chef, a contractor, a doctor, a driver, a film director and a cleaner, and their countries of origin include Algeria, Cambodia, the United States, Afghanistan and the United Kingdom.

“I grew up in a diverse environment. For me, this is the path to peace: to gather in the wealth of our differences," said Ella from Algeria, who is featured in the exhibition.

Since the beginning of 2015, the City of Paris has been committed to supporting migrants and refugees arriving in France, responding to the migration crisis and preparing the integration of people who wish to settle in France.

The portraits are exhibited on the railings of the Saint-Jacques Tower square in Paris from 16 December 2016 to 16 January 2017. They can also be viewed on and through IOM and the City of Paris social media accounts.   

Some of the stories are available in English at iamamigrant.org. To read all the stories, please visit http://iamamigrant.org/fr/stories.

For further information, please contact Sara Abbas at IOM France, Tel. +33 1 40 44 06 28, Email: sabbas@iom.int. Or Florence Kim at IOM HQ, Tel. +41 79 103 03 42,   Email: fkim@iom.int