« There are no strangers on this earth » This is the commitment of La Cimade, which celebrates its 70th anniversary this year.

Since 1939, La Cimade has pursued the same mission: acting among the exiled and the displaced, and helping the victims of every form of oppression. For one year, La Cimade is inviting the public, through programs and activities, cultural presentations and meetings, to discover the great issues and actions that have marked its history in the context of its struggles today in defence of the rights of migrants, refugees and asylum seekers.

    The launch of this anniversary year took place at Strasbourg from the 25th to the 27th of September 2009.

    All the strong points of CIARUS were mobilized to welcome the participants: lodging, food service and meeting halls for workshops for the internal session of La Cimade. Coming from all over France, more than 250 volunteers, members, administrators –both those now active and those active at the very beginning—gathered at CIARUS for an anniversary under the sign of memory, reflection and commitment.

    While we live in a Europe that barricades itself, stigmatizes and expels, the history of La Cimade invites us to stay vigilant, so as to better question the present and imagine how to live together tomorrow.

   On 26 September 2009, 500 people attended the colloquium « Inventing a European Hospitality Policy » which was held at the University Center Hall of Strasbourg.

    Until the end of October, you can see an exhibit created by La Cimade, on the administrative detention centres, in the Hall of Columns of CIARUS.