Afghanistan

Sultan and Suleiman

Sultan and Suleiman braved the 4,000 mile journey from Afghanistan to Germany.

Photography by Lindsay Silsby
Sultan Brother
Sultan Brother
©2016 LINDSAY SILSBY / TSOS

Photography by Lindsay Silsby

Sultan and his brother Suleiman braved the nearly 4,000 mile journey from Afghanistan to central Germany, (the distance from New York City to Denver and back again; or from London across the Atlantic to Boston.) This they did almost completely on foot. The treacherous raft crossing from Turkey to Greece was only part of weeks and weeks of continual danger. They and their family hid under blankets in forests, ducked police gunfire, went without food for days, survived cold and unspeakable fatigue, and more then once were separated from their parents.

Now in their second refugee camp in Germany, they have no structured school or schedule, no toys, no private space, no connection to the world beyond the barbed wire fence that surrounds the barren gravel yard of their current home. While waiting, they try to learn what little German they can on their own, and hope their family of nine can receive formal asylum and begin life anew in a safe country.

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Our team members obtain informed consent from each individual before an interview takes place. Individuals dictate where their stories may be shared and what personal information they wish to keep private. In situations where the individual is at risk and/or wishes to remain anonymous, alias names are used and other identifying information is removed from interviews immediately after they are received by TSOS. We have also committed not to use refugee images or stories for fundraising purposes without explicit permission. Our top priority is to protect and honor the wishes of our interview subjects.

What would you do if you had to leave everything behind?

By the end of 2025, more than 117.8 million people worldwide had been forcibly displaced by war, persecution, or human rights abuses — and 45 million of them are children.

They arrive in refugee camps and countries seeking safety and carrying little: legal papers, if they're lucky. A backpack. A child's hand in theirs.

What they carry that we can't see is heavier: fractured families, homes they'll never return to, professions they loved, friends and relatives they may never see again.

In a climate where immigrant stories are often ignored or twisted, we believe stories are a form of justice. When someone shares what they survived, they reclaim their voice. When we amplify it through film, photography, and advocacy, the world listens. Hearts soften. Policy begins to shift.

Because when a lawmaker sees a person instead of a statistic, and a neighbor understands instead of fears, rebuilding becomes possible.

Your support helps us share these stories where they matter most.

— Kristen Smith Dayley, Executive Director, Their Story is Our Story

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