Italy

Florian was born in Bucharest, Romania, in a relatively wealthy family. His father is a retired officer from the Ministry of Work and Employment and his mother is a primary school teacher. Before Ceasescu's regime collapsed his father resigned and in the following years he started his own real estate business with strong linkages to Italy. After completing his secondary schooling, Florian joined his two brothers living in Italy. He soon built a life there and established a construction business alongside his brother. Throughout his struggles he always had the support from his family. Please read more about Florian's new life in Italy.

Mahmoud was born in Morocco in a rural large family composed of his parents and four brothers and sisters. His father migrated to Italy in 1975 while his wife and family continued to live in Morocco. At the time of the interview Mahmoud had lived in Italy since 2000 after joining his father. His migration experience is a typical one of migrants from the rural countryside in Morocco who move to Italy to join a family member in order to support them in building a better livelihood and income. After he had completed his compulsory education, Mahmoud's father wanted him to find work. Mahmoud had different plans for his life and wanted to build a better future through pursuing his studies. Please read more about Mahmoud's strong will to learn.

King Jefe is a 23 year old young man, who was born in Ecuador in a middle class family composed of two parents, himself and an older brother. After his mother developed cancer and moved to Italy, he began to involve himself in an organisation of Latino youths or commonly known as a 'gang.' When his mother discovered his, she brought him over to Italy, where his involvement in gang activity did not end. He has been in and out of jail for drug dealing and smuggling as well as some more violent crimes. Unfortunately, he has not had the support network to guide him in life. King Jefe's complete story can be found here.