Jozef Merkz — Resident Representative United Nations High Commission for
Refugees, Colombia
August 2020
In the current context of COVID 19, with so many refugees and migrants without livelihoods and
some desperate to return, it is more important than ever to give a voice to persons on the move.
The personal stories collected by TodoSomos will have an important impact on the humanitarian
response that is required, promoting inclusion and support for the most vulnerable. Organizations
such as the UN Refugee Agency will continue to support TodoSomos to make sure people on the
move will be at the center of our humanitarian and protection work. Through the stories we hope
to create a better understanding of the so-called ´caminantes´.
We call on the solidarity of the larger public to listen to refugees and migrants and to reach out to
them with respect and tolerance. In this context we much appreciate the ´story telling´ initiative
of TodoSomos.
Jozef Merkz – Representante Residente Alto Comisionado de las Naciones
Unidas para los Refugiados, Colombia.
Agosto 2020
En el contexto actual de COVID 19, con tantos refugiados y migrantes sin medios de vida y
algunos desesperados por regresar, es más importante que nunca dar voz a las personas en
movimiento. Las historias personales recopiladas por TodoSomos tendrán un impacto
importante en la respuesta humanitaria que se requiere, promoviendo la inclusión y el
apoyo a los más vulnerables. Organizaciones como la Agencia de la ONU para los
Refugiados continuarán apoyando a TodoSomos para asegurarse de que las personas en
movimiento estén en el centro de nuestro trabajo humanitario y de protección. A través de
las historias esperamos crear una mejor comprensión de los llamados ‘caminantes’.
Hacemos un llamado a la solidaridad del público en general para que escuche a los
refugiados y migrantes y se acerque a ellos con respeto y tolerancia. En este contexto,
agradecemos mucho la iniciativa de “contar historias” de TodoSomos.
Eric Huxley – Country Director, Samaritan’s Purse, Colombia
July 2020
The brilliance of TodoSomos is in the way they are able to humanize an unprecedented refugee
crisis while also offering a tangible way for their audience to interact with the material on an
emotional as well as intellectual level.
Having led humanitarian projects for the past several years along the Venezuela-Colombia
border, it has been impossible for me to transmit the thousands of personal interactions I’ve had
with Venezuelan refugees as they seek a new life in another country. While there have been
noble attempts by the press to convey the human-side of the humanitarian crisis Venezuelan
refugees are facing, they can often fall back on tired tropes or, worse yet, feed into a larger
political narrative.
TodoSomos has found a simple, yet very innovative way to let the people confronting the crisis
tell their own story in their own words. What we read through these testimonies does not always
fit the broader narrative we’ve come to believe, but it is real and it lends dignity and agency to
the storyteller.
My nine-year-old daughter and I had the privilege of participating in a public reading of stories
and were forever impacted by the experience. By offering an opportunity to share stories through
theatre and public readings, TodoSomos was able to take us from passive consumers of the
material to active participants with the storytellers.
Eric Huxley – Director país de Samaritan’s Purse, Colombia.
Julio 2020
La brillantez de TodoSomos está en la forma en que son capaces de humanizar una crisis de
refugiados sin precedentes y al mismo tiempo ofrecer una forma tangible para que su
audiencia interactúe con el material tanto a nivel emocional como intelectual.
Habiendo liderado proyectos humanitarios durante los últimos años a lo largo de la
frontera entre Venezuela y Colombia, me ha sido imposible transmitir las miles de
interacciones personales que he tenido con refugiados venezolanos que buscan una nueva
vida en otro país. Si bien ha habido nobles intentos de la prensa por transmitir el lado
humano de la crisis humanitaria que enfrentan los refugiados venezolanos, a menudo
pueden recurrir a tropos cansados o, peor aún, alimentar una narrativa política más
amplia.
TodoSomos ha encontrado una manera simple, pero muy innovadora, de permitir que las
personas que enfrentan la crisis cuenten su propia historia con sus propias palabras. Lo
que leemos a través de estos testimonios no siempre se ajusta a la narrativa más amplia
que hemos llegado a creer, pero es real y le otorga dignidad y agencia al narrador.
Mi hija de nueve años y yo tuvimos el privilegio de participar en una lectura pública de
historias y la experiencia nos impactó para siempre. Al ofrecer la oportunidad de compartir
historias a través del teatro y lecturas públicas, TodoSomos pudo llevarnos de
consumidores pasivos del material a participantes activos con los narradores.
Steve Hide — Head of Mission Médecins sans Frontières, Colombia
July 2020
“TodoSomos gives voice to the ongoing tragedy of Venezuelan migrant families trudging the
roads of Colombia searching for peace and security. This is one of the world’s largest untold
humanitarian crises, affecting tens of thousands of the most vulnerable people, made now worse
by the covid-19 outbreak and economic decline of both their host and home country. I have seen
first-hand the impact of this disaster – both in Venezuela and Colombia – and the heartbreaking
scenes of families struggling on foot to cross the cold mountain barriers that separate them from
their homes. The testimonies that TodoSomos collects are vital both to directing the ongoing
response, but also as a valuable historical record of incidents unfolding across Colombia and the
border”
Steve Hide – Jefe de Misión Médicos Sin Fronteras, Colombia.
Julio 2020
“TodoSomos da voz a la actual tragedia de las familias migrantes venezolanas que recorren
las carreteras de Colombia en busca de paz y seguridad. Esta es una de las crisis
humanitarias no contadas más grandes del mundo, que afecta a decenas de miles de las
personas más vulnerables, empeorada ahora por el brote de covid-19 y el declive
económico tanto del país de origen como del anfitrión. He visto de primera mano el
impacto de este desastre, tanto en Venezuela como en Colombia, y las escenas
desgarradoras de familias que luchan a pie para cruzar las frías barreras de las montañas
que las separan de sus hogares. Los testimonios que recopila TodoSomos son vitales tanto
para dirigir la respuesta en curso, como también como un valioso registro histórico de los
incidentes que se desarrollan en Colombia y la frontera ”.
Jason Rovig — Executive Director Art for Impact
August 2020
Working with the Venezuelan community in Colombia for several years now and seeing the
sheer scale migration, its good to know that there is an organization like TodoSomos collecting
their stories. Everyone has a story that deserves to be told, and even though there are common
elements each is unique to their individual experience. Every backpack and suitcase carried over
the mountain passages is either a livelihood or a life packed up in search of hope. Storytelling is
a necessity for human understanding so it is important that these stories are gathered and retold
and our organization, Art For Impact, supports TodoSomos in this goal.
‘I like the work they do, they capture the crisis in Venezuela through the handwritten stories of those most affected by this crisis — those walking across the border and out of the country hoping for a better life. I have used these stories in my own classroom, this to help my students to understand the larger world around them and the good fortune they have to live in a stable democratic society. This would be a better world if we all were to listen with compassion and love.’