Migrant older people’s life stories in the classroom

Older migrants, who came to the Netherlands in the 1960s and, for instance, worked at Melkunie and the Fokker factory, will tell their stories in the classroom. This is to highlight migrant life and bring history to the attention of schoolchildren. ‘Without them, the Dutch economy was never strong as it is today,’ said project initiator Sahin Yildirim.

In the 1950s and 1960s, the Netherlands suffered a severe labour shortage. After first attracting guest workers from countries such as Italy, Spain, Yugoslavia, Greece and Turkey, an influx of workers from Morocco emerged in the late 1960s.

‘Migrant elders have been through a lot. From a different country and culture, they set out to pioneer and build a better future. What was that like? What did they leave behind and what did they find in the Netherlands? The project ‘Life stories of migrant elderly in the classroom’ deals with stories of migrant elderly people and gives them a stage where they can be proud of their life stories. Through guest lessons in schools, we aim to introduce pupils/schoolchildren to the concept of ‘migration’ , ‘culture’, ‘heritage’ and the history of migrant elders from their city. We believe that telling these stories contributes to a sense of one’s own identity and that we live in a society of peace, solidarity and freedom,’ Sahin Yildirim said.

Lesson on migration

‘Through guest lessons in schools, we want to introduce pupils to the concept of migration and the history of migrant grandparents from their city. The children then interview these grandparents and their stories are recorded. The stories are thus given back to the elderly and shared as widely as possible with residents of the city,’ says Yildirim. ‘By capturing these migration stories, we bring our common history into focus and generate attention to migration in general and migrant elders in particular.’