"Wherever we come from, no matter where we live, we are migrants, and we are fighting for one thing: just to allow a child to have his room, his privacy." Nancy is tired. Arrived in France from Bolivia a few months ago, she now lives on the street with her husband, three children, and about 150 other South American migrants. On July 29, they were all expelled from the squat they occupied in Saint-Ouen, north of Paris. Since then, they sleep in tents installed at the foot of the town hall, to whom they ask for help.
The story had begun well. In February, hope is born when Nancy learns of the existence of this squat Dr. Bauer's street in Saint-Ouen, a disused warehouse that they then arranged to build a real home. The police and firefighters who went there regularly asked, "Who built the bathroom, who painted the walls?" She and her husband, her children and she responded "the migrant" with pride.
Very difficult living conditions
But on July 29 the police came back to evict them. Overnight and without warning. So far, the town hall of Saint-Ouen has remained silent. The mayor of the city, William Delannoy (UDI), in a rare reaction to the Parisian August 6, cleared all responsibility, arguing that it was not his "job to relocate Colombians".
In the meantime, Nancy, her family and all the others (on) have been living on the street for 30 days now. Bad weather, lack of hygiene, difficulty to feed and sleep properly ... If the solidarity of associations and inhabitants of the district is organized around the makeshift camp, living conditions remain very difficult. A demonstration is planned Saturday, August 31 before the town hall of Saint-Ouen, to request rehousing solutions for these families.