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Suitcase Stories®

We all have an immigration story to tell – whether it’s about how you came to call the U.S. home, how living abroad or meeting people with different backgrounds from your own shaped you, or how the people in your life bravely decided to put down roots somewhere new. The way we view and understand diverse backgrounds is profoundly influenced by the stories we hear from neighbors, relatives, and colleagues, as well as our own interactions with people from around the world.

Suitcase Stories® programming explores global migration through storytelling to foster more welcoming and inclusive communities. By inviting U.S. and internationally-born residents to develop and share meaningful personal experiences of migration and cross-cultural exchange, this programming provides a unique way for a community to strengthen understanding and acceptance of newcomers in neighborhoods, schools, and workplaces.

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About the Storytellers

Suitcase Stories® performers include a combination of professional storytellers and people new to the craft. For many storytellers, participating in a Suitcase Stories® performance is their first time sharing their stories in front of a live audience, and it can be a transformative experience.

Past storytellers have traveled to the U.S. from Afghanistan, Cambodia, Cuba, Haiti, Korea, Myanmar, Poland, Somalia, Sudan, and many other countries. Storytellers also include people born in the United States to reinforce how immigration is a subject that affects all of us.

Follow Suitcase Stories® on Facebook and Instagram to learn about upcoming performances. 

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Refugee Resettlement

Join Us at an Upcoming Suitcase Stories® Showcase

Throughout the year, we host public Suitcase Stories® showcases where tellers share their stories in front of a live audience. 

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Case Management

Bring Suitcase Stories® Performances to Your Neighborhood

Book a Suitcase Stories® teller to perform at your school, religious organization, or other community gathering.

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Unaccompanied Children’s Program

Bring Suitcase Stories® Programming to Your Workplace

Host interactive workshops led by migration and storytelling specialists with IINE’s partner, Stellar Story Company. Programs are conducted in person or online and are suitable for large audiences or small groups.

Contact Stellar Story Company to Learn More

Participating in a Suitcase Stories® performance was a memorable experience because it was the first time I have shared my story on stage with other refugees and immigrants to make our voices heard and to be an advocate for the voiceless.”

– Biar Kon, IINE client and former Sudanese refugee

This was an unforgettable experience. It felt good to know I was doing something positive by informing and sharing my story. It took me outside of my comfort zone, but I gained confidence in the end, and I am grateful for being given the opportunity.”

– Luis Cárdenas, Engineer at Biogen

To hear the stories of immigrants at all stages of their assimilation was eye-opening and heartwarming.”

– Elizabeth, audience member at Global Arts Live performance

Suitcase Stories® Performances

Chris Ko

On how his idea of home is shaped by growing up in Guatemala with Taiwanese immigrant parents

Rehema Rwakabuba

On the challenges of making new friends in high school, after coming to Massachusetts as a Congolese refugee

Yari Golden Castano

On how she’s turning her childhood dream of becoming an astronaut into a reality

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ON OUR BLOG

Suitcase Stories®: Ishtar, a Haitian Immigrant, Shares Why She Came and Why She Stays

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