How did you get to Barcelona?

Those of us who come without permission know that, although at first some family will welcome us, then we have to survive. At first I started braids, but soon I saw that I couldn't continue like this. The police did not treat us as a person, the indignity was terrible; we were naked to search for money, they touched our whole body… I could not bear it. And less because of braids, that doesn't hurt anyone.

Why did you choose Europe?

I will be honest: unlike most of my members of my group, it was not a dream for me to come to Europe. I have always known what the difficulties were here and it was clear that in Senegal it was going to be better. But my dream was to study, and my family wanted me to come here so that I could guarantee my studies and go far.

Here the law is against you.

People judge us not to pay taxes, but the problem is that the system is built so we don't have room in the law. If you don't have a job, you can't have permits and you can't get a job without authorization. My first challenge since my arrival was the legalisation of the legal situation. But I found only difficulties.

How do these difficulties affect your collective?

The system introduces us into the bowels of the belief that we are guilty. It's hell. And because most of us who aren't authorized don't know our rights, most of those who are on sale on the street feel useless. I felt this guilt for the first few months, but I quickly realized it was unfair, because the system here did not give me the means to change the situation.

In addition to the system, has society also set limits on you?

The tendency of men to judge is innate. I therefore understand whether we are deliberately judging ourselves or not. What is unacceptable is to condemn ourselves without knowing our reality. If a thief is a thief, I don't know what has made him that way. Or, if a girl like me sells her body in the street, what do I know what has led her to do that? We have to respect each other's lives, especially as most of us have been struggling with our values in order to survive. In addition, ours is the smallest of all crimes, but the system treats us as the largest. We used to be near the port of Barcelona, and in the area there were people who were selling drugs. But the police came to stop us immediately, going from those who sold drugs.

In recent months, your life has changed. How did you get into DiomCoop?

They called me from the Cision Foundation, which works in the field of social cohesion, because when they heard about the intention to create the cooperative, they spread the news in our collective. They called for dialogues, and I decided to participate. After two interviews we held the first meeting of the fifteen Senegalese who formed the cooperative.

To what extent has it been important for you to belong to this cooperative?

It has been decisive, after many years of suffering a ray of light has appeared. The cooperative wants to be the instrument to ensure the regulation of the Barcelona manteres. In addition, we are looking for the possibility of regulating the sale on the street, for example, by defining certain spaces that can guarantee the legal sale. Each cooperativist receives aid of EUR 500 per month to avoid having to sell on the street. This cooperative should be an example of expansion in the other territories.

What is the work dynamics of DiomCoop?

Among the people who form the cooperative there are three who have roles, because otherwise we would not be able to form an association. At the moment, we are looking for outlets. It's a lot of hours. We are working with all the districts of Barcelona to see what the options are. Other members of the group are trained to socialize our work.

The goal is to involve more partners every year, right?

In Barcelona we are a total of 300 manteres and the goal is for ten more people to participate in 2018. But apart from that, we're looking at the possibilities of developing more activities to get as many people as possible to the cooperative. In any case, we have already gained something, because the most important thing that this cooperative has done is for the collective to become aware.

Besides the cooperative, you are immersed in economic studies. How has access to university affected you?

For three years in all offices, I was denied the opportunity to study. In the last attempt, I participated in a competition aimed at those over 25 years of age to enter university. When I went to ask for information, the secretary told me I had banned access, but by a miracle, the director came in and told me yes, I could participate. I will always thank him. My nightmare ended with her. I didn't believe it until I went to the first school.