Embracing different cultures – They are all people with a story

In 2015 a group of National Chengchi University students launched “For Immigrants in Taiwan (F.I.T)”, an activity aimed at reaching out to new immigrants in the country. With the cooperation of independent Taoyuan based bookshop SEAMi, on March 29 a glasses fitting event was held in the bookshop, where pairs of glasses were exchanged for the stories of immigrants and migrant workers.

F.I.T member Lin Jia-rong (林嘉容) said that although there are a large number of migrant workers and immigrants in Taiwan, they make up a section of the community that is often overlooked. Proprietor of SEAMi bookshop, Lin Zhou-Xi (林周熙), believes that the stories of immigrants and migrant workers living in Taiwan are an essential part of Taiwanese culture as a whole, and it was this belief that inspired the opening of SEAMi bookshop.

During the process of fitting glasses, stories were used as a means to promote interaction and exchange between participating staff members and immigrants and migrant workers. The event allowed us to see immigrants and migrant workers in a very positive light, and to reflect on the stereotypes and stigma too often displayed in the media and society. 

Embracing different cultures – They are all people with a story

URL:https://www.peopo.org/news/272141

(以下是中文對照)

擁抱異文化 他們都是有故事的人

照片

由一群政大學生組成的For Immigrants in Taiwan ( F.I.T )，自2015年年初開始進行新移民關懷活動，他們與桃園的望見書間東南亞書店合作，在3月29日書店舉辦了一場配鏡活動，讓移民移工朋友用一則自己的故事，交換一副眼鏡。

F.I.T成員林嘉容表示，移民移工在台灣雖為數眾多，卻也是經常被忽略的一塊；而望見書間負責人林周熙認為移民移工在台灣所經歷的故事，對於台灣文化是非常重要的一環，這也是望見書間成立的宗旨之一。

在配眼鏡的過程中，用故事為媒介，促進移民移工和參與人員之間的交流與互動，也讓我們看見移民移工積極正面的樣貌，更進一步深思充斥媒體與社會上的刻板印象與污名化。