Category: Human stories

The Human Story by Salam Lab News is a compelling series that delves into personal narratives within vulnerable communities. Through in-depth interviews, storytelling, and multimedia elements, the series highlights the lived experiences, challenges, and triumphs of individuals often underrepresented in mainstream discourse. By humanizing complex issues, the Human Story Series aims to foster empathy, bridge gaps in understanding, and contribute to Salam Lab’s broader mission of promoting peace, social justice, and human rights.

  • What is it like to be for peace in a country always ready for war?

    What is it like to be for peace in a country always ready for war?

    ‘In the area around Be’eri, the kibbutz where the Hamas attack took place on the 7th of October, there were people who had been supporting Gazans for years, for example by driving them to Israel if they needed better medical assistance. For an average Israeli, such activists have always been complete freaks,’ Matan, an Israeli…

  • Enrique’s search for paradise

    Enrique’s search for paradise

    He left Cuba because it became too cramped for him. When at the end of the concert he was asked to praise the Cuban Revolution from the stage, he realized he did not have enough freedom

  • Not seeing the sun for eight years

    Not seeing the sun for eight years

    On April 16th, the whole world was talking about Yemen. That day saw a landmark event – a prisoner exchange between the Huti movement and the Yemeni government recognized by the UN. Today, more than a week after the landmark event, prisoners held by Huti militants are beginning to tell their stories

  • ‘I dream of canoeing on the Dnieper River’. One year has passed since Russia invaded Ukraine

    ‘I dream of canoeing on the Dnieper River’. One year has passed since Russia invaded Ukraine

    It’s been a year already. Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine is also the anniversary of establishing the ‘Radziwiłłowska 3’ or ‘R3’ Help Point (named after a street name) run by the Salam Lab. During these 365 days, thousands of Ukrainians and refugees of other nationalities passed through this place, all fleeing the brutality of war,…

  • God, should I tell them that I’m a Muslim?

    God, should I tell them that I’m a Muslim?

    ‘I wish that people didn’t have to be scared anymore. I want them to ask questions, even the inappropriate ones . I prefer that Poles ask me from which part of Iraq I am, so that I can answer back and tell them that I’m from Iran and not Iraq. This helps us start a…

  • ‘The Monday that changed everything.’ We talked to a Turk coming from the epicentre of the earthquake

    ‘The Monday that changed everything.’ We talked to a Turk coming from the epicentre of the earthquake

    ‘When I was finally able to reconnect with my family, I saw my mother’s hands shaking.’ Huseyin Celik, a journalist from Turkey living in Warsaw, tells Salam Lab about the earthquake

  • Sisterhood in climbing. Meet Asma from Afghanistan

    Sisterhood in climbing. Meet Asma from Afghanistan

    “We can’t go to school, university, work, nor can we play our favourite sports. We had no choice but to leave our country”. Interview with a climber from Afghanistan.

  • Sunburnt. A flee from Kabul told by Lemar Elyassi

    Sunburnt. A flee from Kabul told by Lemar Elyassi

    In our society when a girl is underage, she stays under the custody of her father, when she is married, she is under the custody of her husband. It means that a girl is never independent. Read a story of a young doctor from Afghanistan living in Poland.

  • “All I wanted was freedom and safety”. A refugee exclusively for Salam Lab

    “All I wanted was freedom and safety”. A refugee exclusively for Salam Lab

    “I am Rojin Shamo from Iraqi Kurdistan. I am a Yazidi and being a Yazidi is not easy. I’ve always wanted freedom. Europe seemed to be the solution to my problem. I arrived in Lithuania last year, on June 21st to be exact. I live in a refugee camp. My dreams of freedom in Europe…

  • Tiba Kallas: I dreamed that my name would become known

    Tiba Kallas: I dreamed that my name would become known

    First of all, I’d like to introduce myself. My name is Tiba Atheer Kallas. I’m 14. I’d like to start this letter by telling you about my dreams and asking you –  the people of Poland and the people of Europe –  to judge the crimes I’ve committed. The crimes that put my family and…

  • I survived crossing the Poland-Belarus border: a testimony

    I survived crossing the Poland-Belarus border: a testimony

    My name is Ola Sabah Hamad. I am a mother of four children and I want to tell you my story. I come from Baghdad. Living in my homeland is very difficult, especially for families who dream of a peaceful life. I was unable to feel free there with my children, but what’s more important,…

  • Al-Busaidi: Meet the first female football commentator in the Arab World

    Al-Busaidi: Meet the first female football commentator in the Arab World

    Not a single adjective or representation nor any of her numerous (ten, to be exact) former employments could sufficiently and properly introduce the unique individual that is Rumaitha al-Busaidi. Undoubtedly this young activist’s energy could easily fuel at least a few people around her and still keep her going.

  • “I don’t know when we see each other again” – living in and fleeing from Afghanistan

    “I don’t know when we see each other again” – living in and fleeing from Afghanistan

    Aina* is a 21-year-old girl who experienced a lot. She agreed to tell us the story of her life: from being brought up in the patriarchal culture of Afghanistan to going to study abroad. And also about the traumatic separation of the family during the evacuation from the country.