A Familiar Stranger to Racism

 A lot of people come to America thinking that it's going to be this free space. A place that is different. A place of serenity where all their troubles from their previous country will be gone. Many face the tragic reality that America can be very similar to the hostile environment they did everything to escape from. 

Many European immigrants who traveled to America in the 1940's face the rude awakening of America's discrimination and unpleasantries. One person in particular was Malvina, a 11-year-old refugee from Belgium.

While in Belgium Malvina faced discrimination heavily. Teachers would check her hair to see if she had lice. They'd even go as far commenting that she was "clean and well groomed for a Jewish child".Things got to the point where Malvina and her family had to flee the country in fear for the lives and what would've happened to them if they stayed.

Once Malvina reached the United States, she hoped she had left all her troubles behind. Little did she know she would face them again in a different form.

Malvina got her first experience of what racism was like once she saw separate restrooms and drinking fountains for black people and white people. She was confused at the sight of this because they came to America to get away from this same kind of discrimination and had no idea that would have to revisit it.

Nobody Wants Us - Malvina Trailer

It had to have been quite traumatizing for a child to see that. For all Malvina knew she was one the colored people who had to separate from the white people.

Moments like these are pivotal and quite scary to think that we have not quite moved from this trauma because people still face these same kind of sentiments when coming to America. Being able to hear the story of these survivors and how they made it through their suffering could teach America a lot about the beauty of equality and how helping immigrants can change the world for the better.

To find out more about Malvina and many others like her during this time watch the film, "Nobody Wants Us" by Laura Seltzer-Duny.