Culture > Photography With clubs, churches and motorcycles, Berlin becomes home for migrants
For those escaping war-torn countries, life in the German capital holds the promise of a new beginning. But despite a willingness to contribute to society, their search for freedom continues Saturday 15 December 2018 00:13 The Independent Culture Syrian migrant Haidar Darwish performs during a show at Berlin’s Silverfuture club ( Photos Reuters )
Ali Mohammad Rezaie does not celebrate his birthday because his Afghan parents never noted the date he was born. Yet he knows exactly when he arrived in Berlin to seek asylum: 15 October 2015.
That day changed his life.
“It wasn’t a special day. I was tired and had been on the road for two months,” he told Reuters of his overland journey through the Balkans.
Since then he’s sung in a choir and done internships and temporary work at a nursing home, a bakery, hotels and restaurants. It is a far cry from the village of his birth 26 years ago. Join Indpendent Minds Get the best of The Independent
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More than 1 million people have come to Germany as migrants since 2015 under Chancellor Angela Merkel’s open door policy. Since then, migration has divided Europe and helped propel a rise of far-right parties. Read more Inside the journey Central American migrants are making to the US
Rezaie is among those doing their best to make Germany home, but integration is a journey with many highs and lows and it requires more than simply finding a job and learning German.
One woman who helped him is Chris Wachholz. They met at the choir and she later invited him to cook and practice German at the home she shares with her husband. A common interest in motorbikes deepened their friendship.
“Meeting this family was like being given an opportunity for my birthday. They are like my... mother and father,” he said. Afghan migrant Ali poses on the motorbike of his German friends Chris and Jochen
But his immigration status prevents him taking further steps. His asylum application was rejected and he can only stay on as a “tolerated person”, which means he will not be deported but lacks secure status.
As a result, it is unlikely the temporary job he has found preparing food and cleaning at the Lufthansa lounge at Berlin’s Tegel airport will be made permanent.
“I have an apartment here. I know many nice people. If they deport me I’ll lose everything,” he said. His fear is exacerbated because his Afghan ethnic group, the Hazaras, have faced attacks from militants in Afghanistan.
Many migrants say they are welcomed by Germans but others say they have experienced hostility. At the same time, a handful of militant attacks by migrants have enabled some politicians to argue they represent a threat to German society.
For some, though, the move to Germany has meant new freedom.
Haidar Darwish was dancing in Schwuz, one of Berlin’s oldest gay clubs, last year when Israeli student and drag queen Judy La Divana approached him and asked him to perform in her show.
He had never danced on stage in his homeland Syria , but La Divana convinced him to try. Shape Clubs and churches helping Berlin to become home for migrants Show all 15
