photojournalism32weeksatSpéos2023
any child temporarily or definitely deprived of his family support, or who in their own interest, can no longer remain in the presence of their family, has the right of protection and a special help of the State including the children seeking asylum, refugees or migrants, with no considerations of their nationalities, of their immigration status or their statelessness ”
art. 20, Convention on the Rights of the Child
This series aims at documenting the condition of hundreds of boys migrating to Paris and its suburbs, aged between 13 and 17 years old. Their existences is punctuated by chosen or forced movements, by a circular creation and destructions of camps, by the incapacity to durably know the where and when. The asymmetrical relations of rights and power between those boys and law enforcement officers feeds a climate of tension permeating their youth.
This work approaches the lack of stability and sense of home, the eminently transient aspect of their shelters and choices and how it impacts their childhood.
I dedicate these images to them all.
This series has been done partly in collaboration with Médecins Sans Frontières and Association Timmy
1. The boys, gathered near volunteers of NGO's for a brief regarding the protestagainsttheState'sinaction.
2. Wrapped in blankets, beanies and scarves, the minors are waiting neartheirtentsinfrontoftheConseild'Etat.
3. At dawn, displacement to temporary housing scattered in France for over 400 boys, from the destroyed camp a in the presence of theprefecture,NGO'sandlawenforcement.
4. Playing football in the late night as the minors await a response fromtheStatetobehelped.
5. A few law enforcement officers walking back to their vehicles a er the displacement of the minors refugees and migrants to temporaryhousing.
6. Khan, 16 years old, emigrated from Afghanistan with his younger brother Akram, 14 years old to find shelter and money to provideforhisfamily.
7. Young refugees and migrants resting in the sun, in an abandoned school of the16tharrondissementofParis,soontobedemolished.
8. The minors on their charging phone with a generator a er days without electricity,sittingunderneaththeirdrawings.
9. At night, firemen walking through a partly destroyed camp in the suburbs of Paris, as buses pass by in order to displace minorstoasocialhousingafewkilometersaway.
10. Young migrants eating before being moved to temporary housing, overseenbylawenforcementofficers.
11. City representative and law enforcement officer standing near buses as their are being filled by the young migrants and refugees.
12. Young refugees andmigrantsrestinginthesun.
13. Aboubacar, 15 years old, fled a violent family environment in Guinea ; looking through a broken window of a supply room in a temporaryshelterwith200otherminors.
14. Young migrant, washinghisfootbeforehisprayer(Dhuhr).
15. View of the camp of the 400 young migrants and refugees at night and reflection of the police car and officers standing nearbyintheFondationCartierbuilding.
16. Migrant boys waitingforthebusestobedisplaced.
17. Fahim, 16 years old,inthesun,shytoshaveinfrontofothers.
18. Boy, dissimulated behind piles of food stored near the tents of thecamp.
19. A young migrant boy, looking through the window of the main room.
20. Law enforcement officers next to a bus filled by the migrant minorsandtheirluggages.