Changing migration narratives with stories of food, kindness and humanity
A look at the UN Human Rights Office's hope-based migration campaigning
We have a guest post for International Migrants’ Day from human rights advocate Genevieve Sauberli and communications strategist Christina MacGillivray about their migration campaigning for the UN Human Rights Office. See below for some hope-based motivation for migration activists, and the usual hopey, changey stuff.
How OHCHR used a hope-based approach to Stand up for Migrants
By Genevieve Sauberli and Christina MacGillivray
The #StandUp4Migrants campaign focuses on bringing migrants and locals together around shared values and interests to find common ground.
We invite you to use these resources in your own advocacy work as helpful. If you have a hope-based narratives project you would like to collaborate on together, please reach out to us. We welcome all creative ideas for building a more hopeful future for all!
Migration narratives based on human rights
We started in 2019 by developing narrative change methodology tools, publishing this guide for building human rights-based migration narratives. The guide encouraged people to create a vision of the world they want to see, promote values, think local, build a big tent and find common ground.
Based on the guide, we then created a seven-step toolbox with downloadable activities, info and inspiring examples for practitioners on how to shift narratives on migration.
My Great Story: values-based migration campaigning
We started applying these principles in Malaysia and Australia with campaigns that showed how migration enriches societies and the lives of everyone.
(If you want to apply these approaches, we have published a detailed implementation guide with all the audience research and campaign development, telling the story of how we designed, implemented and evaluated these narrative change campaigns.)
Australia: we are all made of the same ingredients
In Australia, we created stories of prominent Australians with different migrant backgrounds sitting down to share a meal and a conversation together after a family dish is prepared in the kitchen, under the slogan “we are all made of the same ingredients”.
You can see some of the content on Instagram here, here and here and on Facebook here.
Malaysia: Stories from my Kitchen
The UN Human Rights Office in Bangkok brought #StandUp4Migrants to Malaysia through the Dari Dapur (Stories from My Kitchen) campaign, using the universal bonding powers of food and storytelling to promote inclusion.
Trusted Malaysian messengers we brought into the kitchens of migrants, learning how to cook the meal while hearing of the memories connected to that particular dish.
Having both migrants and Malaysians cook and eat together allowed us to both have a messenger audiences could relate to while also having meaningful participation for people with migration experience, and crucially brought both together as equals, emphasising what they have in common.
Our post-campaign analysis found that these stories were effective for changing minds and mobilising pro-migration voices: in Australia people said they felt more likely to engage with and talk about migration; in Malaysia people who watched the videos developed a deeper understanding of the migrant experience, and agreed strongly with the common humanity premise at the heart of the campaign.
We also extended these strategies to India
A vibrant mosaic of people call India home: diverse communities which can be united by their colourful festivals where food is shared. We partnered with the Better India, to showcase this preview of a series that tells the stories of everyone who calls India home, one dish at a time.
Stories of humanity around the world
We also published MyGreat Cookbook, a celebration of the culinary journeys and experiences of women chefs who have “MyGreat-ed”.
By sharing these recipes, we strengthen the stories that bring us together and we find ways to welcome people into our communities, to reimagine our collective future. You hear more in this #StandUp4Migrants podcast episode.
Our campaigning work has also tested other cultural avenues, from Dance Workshops in Morocco to stand-up comedy shows , working with young journalists and campaigning for #MisDerechosMigranConmigo in Central America, to streetart in Mexico, where Venezuelan artist Camila de la Fuente create the Camino de esperanza (‘Path of hope’) mural in Mexico City, reflecting the hopes and dreams of migrants and others in the local community.
Help us with our latest campaign
This work continues and you can help by supporting Kindness beyond boundaries, a campaign that celebrates helping someone – sharing food, water, shelter with them, saving their lives, speaking out for them when they cannot, and providing any other assistance.
These acts of solidarity and kindness are an expression of what makes us human and holds our societies together.
Join us to #StandUp4Migrants and #WithRefugees and celebrate stories of kindness and solidarity by downloading and sharing these images (crediting the artist Magda Castría).
As we celebrate International Migrants’ Day 2024, we are immensely grateful to the migrants, illustrators, muralists, musicians, creative artists, activists, chefs, local community members, colleagues who joined us to create these stories of hope and inclusion.
These campaigns show that we can change the narrative on migration, if we in the human rights community work together.
I have wanted to share the amazingly hope-based work Genevieve, Christina and their colleagues are doing for ages! Here is my personal hope-based reflection on the OHCHR’s campaign:
Migration requires welcoming societies
What comes up constantly in hope-based workshops with migration activists is the need to talk about the things that make us all human: universal experiences like food, music and culture and the beautiful transformation that happens to open societies.
This mindset is what truly, subconsciously influences whether or not we are ready to open our doors. We cannot make life better for people on the move until we make societies more open and welcoming - until compassion is common sense. Someone has to do this work to change attitude, behavior and culture (ABC strategy).
We must believe we can make welcome common sense.
Other Migration stuff
Some other migration campaigning highlights from this year. Please send me any others and I will add them to the list!
With Humanity: Human Rights Watch just launched a wonderfully-framed campaign With Humanity. It targets Frontex, a great example of using intrinsic values and a shared humanity meta-narrative for advocacy. You can share these posts on twitter or instagram and do also sign the open letter to Frontex.
Together we thrive: Fine Acts commissioned artists with migration experience to produce illustrations that envision a just and vibrant society where migration is embraced as an adaptation to climate change.
Good things happen when we open up: the #UnboxStories campaign, created by young activists during Young Islam Conference’s Narrative Change Academy. built a “shared humanity” rather than “good immigrant” narrative.
Hopey, changey stuff
Seeds of Hope: Loved this UK campaign organizing local communities to create rituals of hope. Read and share this article to spread the word.
Bright spots: nice innovation in the Civicus annual report highlighting civil society victories and other positive developments.
Quote of the week
“The greatest work which kindness does to others, [is] that it makes them kind themselves.” - Frederick William Faber (full quote here)
Did you know: when we witness kindness, our body feels it as though that kindness were being offered to us!
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