1

"Home" by Warsan Shire

no one leaves home unless

home is the mouth of a shark
you only run for the border
when you see the whole city running as well

your neighbors running faster than you

breath bloody in their throats

the boy you went to school with
who kissed you dizzy behind the old tin factory
is holding a gun bigger than his body
you only leave home
when home won’t let you stay.

no one leaves home unless home chases you

fire under feet
hot blood in your belly
it’s not something you ever thought of doing
until the blade burnt threats into
your neck
and even then you carried the anthem under
your breath
only tearing up your passport in an airport toilet
sobbing as each mouthful of paper
made it clear that you wouldn’t be going back.

you have to understand,

that no one puts their children in a boat
unless the water is safer than the land
no one burns their palms
under trains
beneath carriages
no one spends days and nights in the stomach of a truck
feeding on newspaper unless the miles travelled
means something more than journey.
no one crawls under fences
no one wants to be beaten
pitied

no one chooses refugee camps

or strip searches where your
body is left aching
2
 or prison,
because prison is safer
than a city of fire
and one prison guard
in the night
is better than a truckload
of men who look like your father
no one could take it
no one could stomach it
no one skin would be tough enough

the
go home blacks
refugees
dirty immigrants
asylum seekers
sucking our country dry
niggers with their hands out
they smell strange
savage
messed up their country and now they want
to mess ours up
how do the words
the dirty looks
roll off your backs
maybe because the blow is softer
than a limb torn off

or the words are more tender

than fourteen men between
your legs
or the insults are easier
to swallow
than rubble
than bone
than your child body
in pieces.
i want to go home,
but home is the mouth of a shark
home is the barrel of the gun
and no one would leave home
unless home chased you to the shore
unless home told you
to quicken your legs
3
 leave your clothes behind
crawl through the desert
wade through the oceans
drown
save
be hunger
beg
forget pride
your survival is more important

no one leaves home until home is a sweaty voice in your ear

saying-
leave,
run away from me now
i dont know what i’ve become
but i know that anywhere
is safer than here1

Aerial view of Lampedusa2

1
Warsan Shire, Home, Facing History and Ourselves, https://www.facinghistory.org/resource-library/home-warsan-shire (last
updated Nov. 20, 2023).
2
Roberto Salomone, Lampedusa’s Refugee Crisis-in Pictures, THE GUARDIAN (Aug. 11, 2022)
https://www.theguardian.com/world/gallery/2022/aug/11/lampedusas-refugee-crisis-in-pictures.
4
 Mission Statement
Our Coastal Famiglia’s mission amplifies the voices of migrants traveling from North
and West Africa, across the Mediterranean, and into Southern Italy. This campaign is
founded on our belief that we are all connected. Being connected means caring for
migrants even after they cross borders or entry points. Like the Italian Nonnas, we care
for these migrants and affirm they are all worthy of a safe and abundant life. Caring for
and welcoming migrants is a longstanding tradition throughout coastal Italy. Our
mission continues and expands this tradition. Migrants are coming to Italy because
they lack safety and economic security in their home country. No person should be
punished for providing for themself or their family, especially when that very work
benefits the Italian economy. We provide opportunities throughout Italy for migrants as
they become part of the larger Italian family. We provide resources to help them
navigate obstacles and maintain their unique cultural identities. We provide access to
healthcare, education, and economic opportunities. The boats may stop at the border
but our efforts do not.

5
WHY FOCUS ON LABOR MIGRATION?

Labor migration in Italy is a human rights issue that immediately warrants the
attention of the United Nations General Assembly and the international community.
Lampedusa, Italy’s southernmost island, is the major port for migrants coming from
Sub-Saharan and Northern Africa. As shown by this interactive map,3 migrants are
entering Lampedusa and other Italian ports from all over Northern and Sub-Saharan
Africa. As of 2021, “900 thousand men, women, and children . . . have landed on
Italian shores in the past 16 years.”4 As of September 2023, over 2,000 people have
died or gone missing while traveling along the Mediterranean route.5 This mass
migration through Lampedusa demands there is a protected place for the migrants to
land, of which Italy bears responsibility. “States are entitled to exercise jurisdiction at
their international borders, but they must do so in light of their human rights
obligations.”6
Reports indicate that in a single month, there have been as many as 12,000
migrants making their journey to Lampedusa. This is more than double the population
of the Mediterranean island.7 Even more shocking, in just four days this past
September, Lampedusa saw an influx of 6,000 migrants, overwhelming current NGO
staff.8 These numbers are almost too large to comprehend and indicate, quite clearly,
how the current structure of NGOs and volunteers cannot handle the grandiosity of this
human rights crisis. Still, residents of Lampedusa open their doors to the migrants,
recognizing their need for aid.9 The impact of the migration crisis on Lampedusa has
been widely reported and has even experienced cinematic attention with the Fire at
Sea documentary.10 This sort of attention is helpful in bringing awareness to the
problem but provides few solutions for the migrants themselves.
Many of the migrants are young men, but there are also children, women, and
the elderly making the long, arduous journey. The journey across the ocean can be
extremely dangerous; shipwrecks resulting in injury and death are common: “you have
to understand, / that no one puts their children in a boat / unless the water is safer than
the land.”11 Even when migrants successfully make the journey to Italy, they are left
with physical and mental wounds. For example, an eighteen-year-old from Egypt

3
MEDU, https://esodi.mediciperidirittiumani.org/en/ (interactive map of the migrant routes into Italy).
4
Id.
5
Mediterranean, EUROPEAN COUNCIL OF REFUGEES AND EXILES (Sep. 22, 2023)
https://ecre.org/mediterranean-arrivals-to-lampedusa-spark-new-crack-down-from-italy-commission-10-point-plan-denounced-by-n
gos-germany-gives-up-suspension-of-relocation/.
6
Recommended Principles and Guidelines on Human Rights at International Borders, U.N. HUMAN RIGHTS OFFICE OF THE HIGH
COMMISSIONER (Oct. 23, 2014)
https://www.ohchr.org/en/documents/tools-and-resources/recommended-principles-and-guidelines-human-rights-international.
7
Desperate People From North Africa Landed on the Mediterranean Island of Lampedusa, NPR,
https://www.npr.org/2023/09/22/1200994889/desperate-people-from-north-africa-landed-on-the-mediterranean-island-of-lampedu
#:~:text=Hourly%20News-,Desperate%20people%20from%20North%20Africa%20landed%20on%20the%20Mediterranean%20isla
nd,of%20those%20who%20live%20there.
8
Mediterranean, supra note 5.
9
Tensions Rise on Italy’s Lampedusa Island Amid Migrant Influx, ABCNEWS (Sep. 14, 2023)
https://abcnews.go.com/International/tensions-rise-italys-lampedusa-island-amid-migrant-influx/story?id=103183648.
10
FIRE AT SEA (Stemal Entertainment 2016).
11
Shire, supra note 1.
6
recollected being the victim of a brutal assault in Egypt and Libya while waiting for
passage across the Mediterranean. When he eventually gained passage, he was
subjected to traveling without bathrooms or blankets, exposed to the elements. He
and the other migrants nearly drowned as they ended up in the sea, and were only
rescued with fifteen minutes to spare.12 Another young man, just fifteen-years-old when
his year-and-a-half-long journey started, had to cross six countries before making the
journey across the Mediterranean to Lampedusa.13
Migrants leave their home countries for a variety of reasons, but the majority are
escaping violence, slavery, abuse, or war.14 In other words, most do not migrate to Italy
out of pure choice, but rather out of necessity: “no one leaves home unless home
chases you / fire under feet.”15 This journey forces the migrants through many countries
and regions, many of which are foreign, dangerous, and ill-equipped for resources.
Tripoli, Libya is one of the major stopping points for migrants coming from
Sub-Saharan Africa before they cross the Mediterranean.16 Unfortunately, Tripoli
imprisons many migrants attempting to make the journey, making Libya at times more
dangerous than the countries the migrants are leaving.17 If migrants successfully make
the journey to Lampedusa, their trauma is still not yet over. Lampedusa is just the first
stopping point in Europe, as many wish to travel further into Italy or into other
European countries. Our Coastal Famiglia does not stop at the Italian border. This
humanitarian crisis demands that aid and support be provided for migrants after
landing in Europe.
With the population of Lampedusa being half the number of migrants landing
on their shores just in September of 2023, resources are scarce and tensions are high.18
Though there are current NGOs in place to help the migrants’ arrival in Lampedusa,
there is much distaste within Italy, and Europe in general, to help them integrate. For
example, the Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, insists integration will not solve the
crisis and will only threaten the future of Italy.19 Rather, she theorizes that the only way
to protect Italy is to send the current migrants back to their home countries and stop
others from making the journey in the first place.20 This rhetoric is dangerous, as it
encourages an otherizing view of the migrants who so desperately want to find loving
homes for their families. Again, “home is the barrel of the gun / and no one would
leave home / unless home chased you to the shore.”21

12
Diary from Pozzallo #9, MEDU (Sep. 5, 2019) https://esodi.mediciperidirittiumani.org/en/diary-from-pozzallo-9/.
13
Pamela Kerpius, Meet Alpha, MIGRANTS OF THE MEDITERRANEAN (Sep. 17, 2021) https://www.migrantsofthemed.com/meet-alpha.
14
B., 19 years old, Mali, MEDU (Oct. 16, 2017) https://esodi.mediciperidirittiumani.org/en/b-19-years-old-mali/; See also,
https://www.migrantsofthemed.com/podcast (podcast shares stories of migrants making the dangerous journey across Sub-Saharan
Africa and the Mediterranean).
15
Shire, supra note 1.
16
Medu, supra note 3.
17
F., 23 years old, Nigeria, MEDU (Nov. 9, 2017) https://esodi.mediciperidirittiumani.org/en/f-23-years-old-nigeria/; See also, Diary
from Pozzallo #10, Medu (Oct. 1, 2019) https://esodi.mediciperidirittiumani.org/en/diary-from-pozzallo-10/.
18
Ruth Sherlock, Desperate People from North Africa Landed on the Mediterranean Island of Lampedusa, NPR (Sep. 22, 2023)
https://www.npr.org/2023/09/22/1200994889/desperate-people-from-north-africa-landed-on-the-mediterranean-island-of-lampedu
#:~:text=Hourly%20News-,Desperate%20people%20from%20North%20Africa%20landed%20on%20the%20Mediterranean%20isla
nd,of%20those%20who%20live%20there.
19
Mediterranean, supra note 5.
20
Id.
21
Shire, supra note 1.
7
 This migration crisis is not just a human rights issue, it is also a children’s rights,
environmental, and economic issue. In Italy, about 10% of the employed population
are migrants.22 These migrants contribute in significant, positive ways to the Italian
economy. Yet, migrant households are statistically more likely to be in poverty than
Italian households.23 The people who migrate from Africa to Italy for work are often
subjected to unsafe and unhealthy work conditions. Many perform hard physical labor
during the day, only to return at night to a shelter lacking necessities like running water
and electricity.24 Much of the current support for migrants comes from volunteers within
Italy. For example, since 2015, the Baobab Experience has provided food, medical
assistance, and temporary places to stay in Rome. However, the police have driven the
camps out of their designated areas, forcing the volunteers to consistently search for
new locations to temporarily house the migrants.25 Regardless, the volunteers are just
an example of the heart-warming nature of Italians. “Our experience at Baobab proved
that the city of Rome has a strong and aware civil society that reacts for the people with
promptness and humanity when institutions seem to only show indifference.”26 Our
Coastal Famiglia intends to amplify this welcoming tradition and encourage the same
throughout Italy.
Our Coastal Famiglia is seeking volunteers and calling on donors to provide
resources and support for our expansive mission and far-reaching efforts. This
campaign has chosen to focus specifically on the communities most directly involved in
the Sub-Saharan to Lampedusa migration. Providing support at the community level
will produce both short and long-term benefits for these migrants, the receiving
communities, and Italy as a whole. Our Coastal Famiglia intends to pressure the Italian
government to make substantial, long-lasting changes in how migrants are treated and
viewed within the society. This community-based approach will ensure direct and
meaningful results. Our Coastal Famigila recognizes that this human rights crisis cannot
be ignored. We must act now by working with existing NGOs, human rights groups,
donors, and the Italian government on behalf of this migrant population.

22
12th Ann. Rep. on Foreigners in the Labor Mkt. in Italy,
https://integrazionemigranti.gov.it/en-gb/Dettaglio-approfondimento/id/46/12th-Annual-Report-on-Foreigners-in-the-Labor-Marke
t-in-Italy#:~:text=There%20are%202.3%20million%20foreign,percent%20of%20the%20total%20employed (last visited Nov. 22,
2023).
23
Id.
24
Inside African Migrants’ Fight Against ‘Slave-Like’ Conditions in Italy, PBS NEWS HOUR (May 14, 2021)
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/inside-african-migrants-fight-against-slave-like-conditions-in-italy.
25
BAOBAB EXPERIENCE, https://baobabexperience.org/about-us/ (last visited Nov. 22, 2023).
26
Id.
8
LEGAL ISSUES:

The overarching principles guiding our legal research are the 1951 Refugee
Convention27 and the 1982 Convention of the Law of the Sea28. The 1951 Refugee
Convention defines a refugee as someone who, owing to a well-founded fear of being
persecuted for part of their identity, is unable or unwilling to return to their home
country.29 The convention also enumerates other standards to which ratifying states
must adhere, including non-discrimination, freedom of religion, the right to be
employed, the right to access basic needs, and access to basic legal representation.
Italy signed onto this treaty in 1952 and ratified it in 1954.30
Italy is a signatory and has ratified the 1982 United Nations Convention on the
Law of the Sea.31 Since the migrants are traveling across international waters to
Lampedusa and other entry points, it is important to understand Italy’s rights and
duties under this treaty. Though Italy’s territorial sea reaches twelve nautical miles, its
contiguous zone is twenty-four nautical miles. According to the treaty, Italy is permitted
to enforce their internal policies, including immigration, within this area.32
Italy’s duties are to permit innocent passage without interference within and
outside their contiguous zone. They are not allowed to discriminate in form or fact
against ships of any nation or ships carrying cargo to and from another nation. Ship
passage is presumed innocent until the ship initiates a prejudicial activity. To date, the
Italian government frames its view of the passage of migrant boats as prejudicial and
therefore, not innocent according to Article 25 of the treaty.33 However, Italy has a
great duty to vessels in their waters. Italy is obligated to secure and maintain safe
passage for vessels carrying their respective country’s flag. The treaty also imposes a
duty for the Italian government to ensure vessels carrying their own country’s flag
rescue people at sea and render assistance to other boats or ships in need, regardless
of their country of origin.34
The two major legal issues we addressed in this campaign are: (1) fair and
equitable treatment of migrants as they await transportation from Lampedinto other
parts of Italy; and (2) the severe assimilationist tendencies of the Italian government
that impede migrants from retaining their own cultural identity as they immigrate to
find work to improve their economic security. The two conventions that most closely
address these two issues are the International Convention on the Protection of the
Rights of Migrant Workers and Members of their Families (“International Convention”),

27
Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, opened for signature July 28, 1951, 189 U.N.T.S. 137 (entered into force April 22,
1954); Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees, 985 U.N.T.S. 297 (January 31, 1967) (amendment clarifying the definition of
refugees).
28
U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea, opened for signature Dec. 10, 1982, 1833 U.N.T.S. 397 (entered into force Nov. 16,
1994).
29
Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, opened for signature July 28, 1951, 189 U.N.T.S. 137 (entered into force April 22,
1954); Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees, 985 U.N.T.S. 297 (January 31, 1967) (amendment clarifying the definition of
refugees).
30
Id.
31
U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea, supra note 26.
32
Id.
33
Id.
34
Id.
9
last updated in 2003,35 and the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly, and Regular
Migration (“Global Compact”), adopted in 2018 and updated in 2022.36
The Global Compact’s most relevant objectives and commitments are
Objectives 6, 15, and 16.37 Objective 6 is to facilitate fair and ethical recruitment and
safeguard conditions that ensure decent work; Objective 15 is to provide access to
basic services for migrants; Objective 16 is to empower migrants and societies to
realize full inclusion and social cohesion. Objective 6 requires considerable
coordination across stakeholders to implement. It involves the UN using its power to
speed up ratification and implementation of intergovernmental agreements that
protect labor rights and better working conditions. The UN will build on its prior work
around labor mobility by creating a dialogue between the different organization levels
to create a labor migration policy that can be interpreted universally. In the Global
Compact § 22(d), the UN specifically mentions establishing partnerships with all
relevant stakeholders, including community organizations and those looking to provide
humanitarian aid. This section of the compact addresses labor migration as a reality,
not an irregular series of tragic incidents, and takes steps to minimize issues that
migrants have.38
In Objective 15, the UN commits to ensuring that all migrants have safe and
equal access to basic services. The UN will enact anti-discrimination laws to make sure
that migrants can access these services without any issues. The UN will also establish
third-party monitoring institutions to address complaints from migrants who are denied
access to basic services. This objective also guarantees migrants the right to privacy
and mandates that migrant children be given the same quality of education as
non-migrant children.39
The International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of Migrant Workers
and Members of their Families’s most relevant provisions are Articles 7, 16(1), 16(2), 24,
30, and 31(1).40 Article 7 requires states to ensure that migrant workers are entitled to
rights in their new country without any distinction for gender, race, language,
nationality, ethnicity, age, socioeconomic status, and marital status. Article 16 gives
migrant workers and their families the right to liberty and personal security. It requires
the State's law enforcement to protect migrant workers from violence and other
threats.41
Articles 24, 30, and 31(1) concern personhood under the legal system, equal
access to basic needs, and respect for migrant workers' cultural identity. Article 24
establishes that every migrant worker and their family member will be recognized as a
person under the respective country's justice system.42 Article 30 guarantees migrant
worker's children an unrestricted right to education and access to public school in the

35
Int’l Convention on the Prot. of the Rights of All Migrant Workers & Members of Their Fams., opened for signature Dec. 18,
1990, 2220 U.N.T.S. 3 (entered into force July 1, 2003).
36
G.A. Res. 73/195, Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (Dec. 19, 2018).
37
Id.
38
Id.
39
Id.
40
Int’l Convention on the Prot. of the Rights of All Migrant Workers & Members of Their Fams., supra note 33.
41
Id.
42
Id.
10
family's state of employment.43 Article 31(1) places a burden on state parties to ensure
respect for migrant workers' differing cultural identity.44 A state political party cannot
prevent a migrant worker's family from continuing to practice their cultural traditions.
Italy has not ratified this Convention or the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly,
and Regular Migration.45 As our research progresses, a question we will explore is
whether Italy should ratify either of these conventions and if that legislative advocacy
should be a component of our campaign.

Example countries who voted yes/were signatories on both the Global Compact for
Safe, Orderly, and Regular Migration and the International Convention on Protection of
Migrant Workers and Rights of Their Families
● Argentina
● Bosnia and Herzegovina
● Egypt
● Guatemala
● Mexico
● Nicaragua
● Peru
● Philippines
● Turkey46

Quote from Philippines representative on the day of the Global Compact vote:

The representative of the Philippines, stating that his country will vote in favour
of endorsing the Global Compact, said the notion that migration is bad has
been defeated with facts, not frightful fantasies of job losses. Migration is a
shared responsibility of sending, receiving and transit countries and no one
State can address it alone. He said the word “compact” was chosen precisely
because, unlike “treaty,” it has no settled meaning in international law. The
Global Compact is a triumph of multilateralism with sovereign States acting in
concert with each other for humane objectives. It does not derogate one iota
from sovereignty but reveals sovereignty’s fundamentally moral nature.
“Sovereignty is as much about duty of care as it is an assertion of unlimited
freedom of action,” he said. States wish they could pick and choose which
migrants to take and which to reject, and for the most part they do, however
migrants are not slaves in transport, but free human beings on the move.
Recalling that, during negotiations, the Philippines proposed treating migration
as much a matter of migrants’ expectations as of a State obligation, he said no

43
Id.
44
Id.
45
Italy: Flawed Migrant Regularization Program, HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH (Dec. 18, 2020),
https://www.hrw.org/news/2020/12/18/italy-flawed-migrant-regularization-program.
46
See Int’l Convention on the Prot. of the Rights of All Migrant Workers & Members of Their Fams., opened for signature Dec. 18,
1990, 2220 U.N.T.S. 3 (entered into force July 1, 2003); G.A. Res. 73/195, Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration
(Dec. 19, 2018).
11
 power can extinguish hope. It is not a crime to wish for better and to do
something about it, he said. It may be illegal, but it is not criminal.47

Quote from Italy representative on the day of the Global Compact vote:

The representative of Italy explained that her Government has deferred a

decision on whether to join the Global Compact to a subsequent Parliamentary
debate. In light of that fact, her delegation abstained today.48

Quote from Turkey representative on the day of the Global Compact vote:

The representative of Turkey said that, as an ardent supporter of the process that
led to the Global Compact, her delegation voted in favour of “L.66”. The
agreement is a landmark instrument that addresses all aspects of migration.
International cooperation on migration has never been so vital. Turkey’s main
expectation is that irregular migration will be replaced by regular migration, she
said, adding that the agreement will fill an important gap by creating a minimum
set of standards. Referring to article 2 in the Global Compact, she said Turkey
will be under no obligation to abide by an international agreement to which it is
not a party.49

Both Turkey and the Philippines recognized the urgent need to enact an
international law governing migration given the severity of the crisis. The two states
recognized that migration requires international collaboration to mitigate its inherent
precarity and danger. They acknowledge the migrants’ humanity by signing the
compact, and do not view the Global Compact as diametrically opposed to
sovereignty and self-determination. Both Italy and the United States didn’t sign onto
the Global Compact or the International Convention; we encourage these two
countries to look past their conception of sovereignty and sign onto this legislation.

47
U.N. GAOR, 73rd Sess., 60th & 61st mtg., U.N. Doc. GA 12/113 (Dec. 19, 2018), https://press.un.org/en/2018/ga12113.doc.htm;
see also, U.N. GAOR, Press Release GA 9532 (Dec. 9, 1998) (link to original press release of adoption of The Int’l Convention on
the Prot. of the Rights of Migrant Workers & Members of Their Fams.).
48
Id.
49
Id.
12
SOCIO-CULTURAL RECKONINGS:

Three major socio-cultural reckonings require attention before meaningful work

on the migrant crisis on the coast of Lampedusa can take place: (1) the historical roots
of nationalistic, right-wing, anti-immigrant rhetoric; (2) the mischaracterization of
migrants; and (3) the misunderstandings about migrants’ impact on the Italian
economy.
Addressing the ongoing migrant crisis first requires delving into the historical
roots and origins of anti-migrant sentiment in the modern Italian state. The Italian
Social Movement (MSI) was founded in 1946 as a haven for fascist sympathizers.
Following WWII, Italy officially banned fascism. However, the MSI preserved many of
the tenets and ideals of Mussolini’s fascist government: a skepticism of democracy; a
hatred of communism; a nationalistic Italy-first ideology; and an embrace of
“traditional” family and religious values. This background helps contextualize the rise
of the Brothers of Italy, the current party in power in Italy. Georgia Meloni co-founded
the party in 2012 and deemed it “a new party for an old tradition.”50 The party has
attempted to rebrand in an attempt to distance itself from its neo-fascist roots, yet it
seems that the majority of the concern about the party’s ideology comes from those
outside of Italy. Many Italians have adopted a willful blindness regarding their country’s
history with fascism and support the Brothers of Italy because of its status as the “new
kid on the block.”51
The Italian government’s response to the tragic October 3, 2013, migrant
shipwreck off the coast of Lampedusa is more indicative of the Italian people’s view of
migrants than Giorgia Meloni’s far right-wing government. Following the tragic
shipwreck and loss of over 360 lives, the Italian Prime Minister at the time, Enrico Letta,
expressed his great sadness and intent to hold a state funeral for the migrants who
perished.52 Unfortunately, this state funeral did not take place for a variety of reasons,
including supposed sanitation concerns and logistical difficulties.53 The Italian
government instead held a quick memorial service and planned to have the bodies
unceremoniously buried in several graveyards throughout the region.54 Lampedusa’s
mayor at the time, Giusi Nicolini responded to this state decision with frustration: “My
community does not deserve to not be involved . . . if they had told us they would be
taking away the coffins, we would have arranged for these people to have if not state
funerals at least national funerals.”55 Many felt the victims of the shipwreck deserved a
dignified farewell, so a group of locals in the town of Valledolmo, Sicily, took it upon
themselves to receive the coffins of the victims when they were delivered to the local
cemetery.56 The locals held a funeral for the deceased to show “human solidarity to
50
How a Party of Neo-Fascist Roots Won Big in Italy, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS (Sep. 26, 2022),
https://apnews.com/article/elections-rome-italy-6aa9fcb003071c307190a4053f199d98.
51
Id.
52
Lampedusa Mayor Angered by Failure to Give Boat Disaster Victims State Funeral, THE GUARDIAN (Oct. 18, 2013),
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/oct/18/lampedusa-boat-disaster-victims-state-funeral.
53
Id.
54
Id.
55
Id.
56
Id.
13
those who were trying to flee hunger, poverty and war and find freedom.”57 It is clear
that the current right-wing government’s treatment and view of migrants is not
representative of the majority of Italians’ treatment and view of migrants.
Several NGOs and community-led efforts are currently tackling the migrant crisis
in Lampedusa and southern Italy at large. However, many of these NGOs and
communities are overwhelmed due to a lack of support from the Italian government
combined with increasing migration. Giorgia Meloni had promised to stop boat
crossings from North Africa as part of her election campaign, yet, arrivals are
significantly higher than last year. So far in 2023, more than 145,000 migrants have
come to Italy by sea, as opposed to 88,000 in the same period in 2022.58 From
October 18, 2013, until October 31, 2014, Italy temporarily conducted a naval-led
military and humanitarian operation called “Mare Nostrum” to address the migrant
crisis in the Strait of Sicily.59 However, there is currently no state-led naval rescue
mission to assist migrants crossing through the Mediterranean.60 According to Amnesty
International, small reception facilities have been overwhelmed since September of this
year due to the thousands of people arriving in Lampedusa.61 Several NGOs are trying
to conduct rescue operations throughout the Mediterranean, including Doctors
Without Borders, SOS Méditerranée, Emergency, and others, but these efforts are
being hampered by Meloni’s government.62 The Italian government needs to stop
interfering with these organizations that are doing life-saving work.
Significant efforts will have to be made to combat the mischaracterizations of
migrants. The negative mischaracterizations and misconceptions about migrants
contribute to fear and hostility toward those seeking refuge in Italy. Unfortunately,
much of this misleading information is being posted and shared through social media,
creating and capitalizing on an appealing ‘us’ versus ‘them’ mentality concerning
migrants.63 It is vital to recognize that these migrants are being stereotyped even
though they come from diverse backgrounds and circumstances. The current prime
minister of Italy, Giorgia Meloni, has demonized migrants, calling them “smugglers”
and “slave drivers,” suggesting that when they are allowed into Italy, they “push
drugs” and “prostitute themselves.”64 Prime Minister Meloni and her right-wing
coalition declared a state of emergency because of the in-flow of migrants.65 This
inaccurate portrayal of migrants as threats to Italian society and national security is a
substantial obstacle in overcoming anti-migrant sentiment.

57
Id.
58
Italy Announces Deal to Build Migrant Centers in Albania, POLITICO (Nov. 7, 2023),
https://www.politico.eu/article/italy-and-albania-strike-rwanda-style-migrant-deal/.
59
Mare Nostrum Operation, MARINA MILITARE, https://www.marina.difesa.it/EN/operations/Pagine/MareNostrum.aspx.
60
Ten Years Since the Lampedusa Shipwreck, What Lessons Have Been Learned?, AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL (Oct. 3, 2023),
https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2023/10/ten-years-since-the-lampedusa-shipwreck-what-lessons-have-been-learned/.
61
Id.
62
Charities Say New Italian Rules Will Limit Rescues at Sea, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS (Dec. 29, 2022),
https://apnews.com/article/politics-italy-government-europe-mediterranean-sea-9c0a1dbb637be3011afa49cc68a5cb4b.
63
Anti-Immigrant Populism in Italy, YALE REVIEW OF INT’L STUDIES (Jan. 2021), http://yris.yira.org/winter-issue/4659.
64
Right-Wing Victory in Italy Expected to Bring Swift Change to Migration, THE WASHINGTON POST (September 26, 2022),
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/09/26/italy-meloni-right-wing-migration/.
65
NGOs in Italy Slam Europe for Allowing Migrant Deaths in the Mediterranean, EURONEWS (May 18, 2023),
https://www.euronews.com/2023/05/18/ngos-in-italy-slam-europe-for-allowing-migrant-deaths-in-the-mediterranean.
14
 In reality, migrants arriving on the coast of Lampedusa are trying to escape
poverty, violence, and inhospitable homes. Many migrants are forced to pay an
exorbitant price for passage and endure horrendous conditions and violence along
their journey to safety. Some NGOs are working to tell migrants’ stories and amplify
their voices. Comitato 3 Ottobre is a Lampedusa-based NGO that has, since 2013,
“been working with European schools to build a different concept of immigration,
create memory, support reception and inclusion policies, and build a victims' DNA
database.”66 Migrants of the Mediterranean (MotM) is an NGO that is committed to
documenting, photographing, and telling the stories of migrants, primarily those who
travel to Lampedusa, but also across Europe.67 “Moses” is just one of the many
migrants whose story has been told by MotM.68 Moses is a 31-year-old man from Benin
City, Nigeria, who crossed Nigeria, Niger, and Libya to reach Lampedusa.69 He left
Nigeria on May 4, 2016 but his journey to Lampedusa took one year and three days.70
He had to endure being kidnapped and tortured as a captive of the Libyan mafia for
more than 2 months until his family could raise enough money to pay the ransom.71 He
had to work at a used car lot in Tripoli washing and polishing cars until he could make
enough to pay to cross the Mediterranean Sea in a rubber dinghy.72 Moses endured 18
hours out at sea in this dinghy before he was finally rescued and landed in Lampedusa
on May 7, 2017.73 Moses, and so many others like him, are not criminals; they are
human beings trying to escape poverty and violence, simply seeking a safe, decent life.
A major hurdle in overcoming and correcting anti-migrant sentiment is the
misrepresentation of migrants’ impact on the Italian economy. Recently, Italian
leadership has pinned the poor economic conditions and unemployment numbers on
migrants. According to a Pew Research poll, as of 2018, only 15% of Italians believed
the Italian economy was in good condition.74 Leadership provides frustrated Italians
with a simple explanation: the rates of unemployment are a result of migrants taking
jobs away from Italian citizens. The truth is that many migrants choose to work jobs that
Italian citizens would rather not. Additionally, migrants are painted as undeserving of
government help in comparison to the Italian citizens suffering from unemployment.75
Identifying the economic benefits of migrants can combat the misconception that they
are solely a burden on the Italian economy and can highlight the potential economic
benefits of well-managed migration policies.

66
COMITATO 3 OTTOBRE, https://www.comitatotreottobre.it/home?lang=en.
67
About Us, MIGRANTS OF THE MEDITERRANEAN, https://www.migrantsofthemed.com/about-us.
68
Meet Moses, MIGRANTS OF THE MEDITERRANEAN (May, 2017), https://www.migrantsofthemed.com/meet-moses.
69
Id.
70
Id.
71
Id.
72
Id.
73
Id.
74
Anti-Immigrant Populism in Italy, YALE REVIEW OF INT’L STUDIES (Jan. 2021), http://yris.yira.org/winter-issue/4659.
75
Id.
15
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16
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17
30. Tensions Rise on Italy’s Lampedusa Island Amid Migrant Influx, ABCNEWS (Sep. 14, 2023)
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18