In Turin, foreigners have been waiting in line for weeks, even overnight in freezing temperatures, to obtain their residence permits. A high school teacher joined her Nigerian-born student in the queue to help her renew her permit -- essential for taking her high school leaving exam.
A high school teacher stood in line at 5 am in the freezing cold of a winter morning in northern Italy, joining dozens of foreign nationals who queue day and night outside the immigration office at the Turin police headquarters.
Rachela Baroni, who teaches Italian and history at the Beccari Wine and Food Institute, did not want to leave an 18-year-old student of hers alone in line to renew an expired stay permit -- without which she could not apply to take her high school leaving exam.
'Perhaps seeing her with a white person will get her in'
The young woman was born in Turin but is of Nigerian origins. She turned 18 in May and, due to lengthy bureaucratic procedures and delays, she may not get Italian citizenship.
Her teacher decided to try to help her in her attempt to get inside the immigration office, noting that "perhaps they will let her enter if they see her with a white person," though "it is sad to admit this".
And so, the teacher and student found themselves side by side, enduring the long wait with a mix of frustration and hope.
"Every time she came to wait in line with her father she was sent back for some problem or other. She was never allowed to access the offices and thus at a certain point I offered to accompany her," Baroni said.
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Girl has not had documents for over a year
The girl lost her mother in August 2023 and for over a year had not had valid identification documents or access to a family doctor, as her school in the Barriera area of Milan found out.
"It was November 2023. Her mother had died a few months before and she was not well. Thus we advised her to go to the doctor -- but she no longer had access to one," the teacher noted.
Without a valid residence permit, the young woman was unable to collect her middle-school diploma or submit her request to take the high school leaving exam before the December 30 deadline. She had to restart the lengthy application process, which was further delayed because her father’s residency certificate had yet to be issued. The earliest available appointment was in late February.
To speed up the process, authorities suggested she apply for a residence permit through family reunification with her sister, who is already an Italian citizen.
"They gave us a list of documents required. Only when she has all of them can she return to the police headquarters and request another appointment to make the request."
Author: Andrea Doi
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