BAM Test

September 09, 2016 | All Grades

By Steven McIntosh

Residents wait at the bus stop in the Ronna neighborhood, where Syrian and Iraqi refugees are concentrated in Sodertalje, Sweden. The small Swedish city is known for its open-door policy towards refugees, which is mostly made up of Christian Syrians and Iraqis. People of Middle Eastern origin account for 30,000 of the town's 90,000 residents. Image by Holly Pickett. Sweden, 2014.

Father Stefan Ayoub presides over an evening prayer at St. Gabriel Syrian Orthodox Church in Sodertalje. Ayoub moved here six years ago from Qamishli, a city in northeastern Syria. In the last three years, as civil war has torn apart Syria, and many residents from Qamashli want to come to Sodertalje. Image by Holly Pickett. Sweden, 2014.

Parishioners attend a mid-week prayer service at St. Gabriel Syrian Orthodox Church. Since the Syrian war began three years ago, the town has seen a marked increase in Syrian refugees resettling in Sodertalje, straining many city services. Image by Holly Pickett. Sweden, 2014.

Firas Jabro of Qamishli, Syria, wrote Swedish words and their Arabic translations in the Swedish language class. Sodertalje's unemployment rate is twice as high as Sweden's national rate. That's partly because refugees are struggling to learn Swedish, a requirement for a job. Image by Holly Pickett. Sweden, 2014.

Saad Shamoon Moshi (left), Father Stefan Ayoub, and Swedish teacher Marie Silen in the Swedish language class for immigrants. Even by Swedish standards, Sodertalje has been exceptionally welcoming to refugees. Image by Holly Pickett. Sweden, 2014.

Apartment blocks in Hovsjo neighborhood, where there is a high population of Syrian and Iraqi refugees in Sodertalje. The Swedish city now has five Syrian Orthodox churches, two professional soccer teams, and a TV channel that broadcasts in Neo-Aramaic, Arabic and English to eighty countries. Image by Holly Pickett. Sweden, 2014.

Sodertalje Mayor Boel Godner in her office. The city has been extremely welcoming to immigrants, but services are now strained. "What's going to happen to everyone who comes here? No one has given an answer to that," she says. Image by Holly Pickett. Sweden, 2014.