For more than six months, from late 2015 into 2016, I followed thousands of migrants along the Balkan route into Europe — photographing desperate people fleeing from war, poverty and persecution. Most came from Syria and Afghanistan. Through it all, I couldn’t shake the thought that, had I been born in a different country, I could easily have been on the other side of the lens.
More than a year later, I used social media to track down some of these subjects, now settled in Germany. Though I’d only exchanged a few words with some of them initially, seeing them again strengthened our bond: I didn’t know them well, but we’d shared some of the most trying moments of their lives.
Everyone I spoke to was grateful to have ended up in Germany. That gratitude, however, is tempered by growing distrust toward refugees and asylum seekers. Times have changed and the open arms they were welcomed with in 2015 have closed a little.
All these young men came from war zones, where they left behind their lives — and their families. While they’re relieved to be out of war-torn environs, there’s a shared sense of deep loneliness in their new homes.
