A mother, speaking at a seminar on life after parental care organized by the Italian bishops' conference in collaboration with their disability catechesis program, shared her worry about her daughter's future.
One year after the approval of the After Our Care law, we begin in this issue to address it, seeking answers to the many concerns the law raises. This mother pointed out that the state does intervene, yes—but as an insufficient source of funding. She was not trying to dismiss the many private initiatives that the law encourages. Rather, she wondered: where resources do not exist, what happens then?
She reflected on inclusion as something that extends beyond the family—something the state must work to guarantee (under law 328/2000), along with other institutions that serve society, the Church included.
This mother added: "I could be very wealthy and create a beautiful trust for my daughter. But my daughter would still live alone. I cannot force society to welcome her. That welcome must be built." Welcome is the necessary foundation for any true inclusion.
It matters greatly to us, yet it is often difficult to achieve. Let us widen our gaze to where our sincere commitment to welcome is tested by the arrival of migrants.
A meaningful attempt to bring different forms of vulnerability into dialogue took place when a group of people with disabilities from L'Aquila, Comunità 24luglio, met with some immigrants being sheltered in four small Italian towns. They created a documentary in which they express how necessary it is to keep asking questions in order to understand their experiences more fully.
Regarding migrants, we also asked ourselves: Are there people with disabilities among those arriving by sea or land in search of refuge? Or are they forced to stay behind? The young women on our cover were the first to answer our questions: Nujeen and her sister Nasrine, who made their way from Syria to Germany in exactly the manner shown in the photograph and described in a book we reviewed. There is no doubt: if a path to safety exists, every human being will try to take it. Let us not tire of asking questions—and let us build a culture of welcome.
Cristina Tersigni, 2017