A UNC student has a message for immigrants: 'American youth welcomes you'

Students are sending welcoming messages to immigrants and refugees in the Pit today. 

Project Welcome was started a month ago by eight students at the University of Maryland. A canvas was set up on their campus and students were asked to write stories of immigration and welcoming messages for other immigrants. They ended up with over 200 signatures in three hours. 

The group has now expanded Project Welcome to over 60 colleges and universities.

Sophomore biology and health policy and management major Anita Amin is involving UNC in Project Welcome. 

“Project Welcome’s goal is for each college to have a canvas that students write welcoming messages on, and each canvas will be sewn together into a huge banner and hung in an international airport,” Amin said.

Amin is from Maryland, and her friends at the University of Maryland reached out to her to start it at UNC.

“I work with refugees at the Refugee Health Initiative, so this is a cause I really care about,” Amin said. “We want to create a giant piece of performance art that sends a clear message to immigrants and refugees — American youth welcomes you.” 

Amin said she is excited because she feels like there is a lot of support at UNC for this kind of issue.

“Most colleges usually get around 150 signatures, but I feel like just with so many people coming through the Pit, we’ll get at least 150 to 200,” Amin said. “I’m going to make sure of that.”

First-year anthropology major Larissa Burke said she is looking forward to signing the canvas. 

“I think getting involved in Project Welcome is really important because it is valuable for refugees, immigrant families and migrant families to know that they are welcomed and they are cared for,” Burke said.

Burke’s parents are both refugees, so she said she has a personal connection to this.

“I actually told my dad about it and how excited I was,” Burke said. “I think it’s just the right thing to do. I want people to know that they are okay here.”

Sophomore psychology and exercise and sports science major Kinjal Patel said she also plans on signing the canvas. 

“The whole purpose of the event is to promote equality and that we as a campus are welcoming to immigrants and refugees," Patel said. “Coming from an immigrant background, I have a connection to it.”

Patel said she would like to think UNC’s student body is welcoming to all different backgrounds.

“One of our strengths is diversity,” Patel said. “I think an event like this really helps promote that.”

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