Language of Belonging
In some cultures, you grow up with the ‘we’ in mind your family, your neighbours, your traditions walk beside you from day one In others, like Australia, the ‘me’ leads independence, self-expression, personal choice
Neither is better But when you’re raising kids between the two? The dance between ‘we’ and ‘me’ becomes more than a cultural concept it becomes your daily life You’re not just parenting You’re translating an entire world This month, we explore how migrant mothers in Australia are quietly rebuilding the world, one child, and one cold sandwich, at a time
Welcome to this month’s edition of The Sister Project newsletter We’re so glad you’re here, thank you for reading, and we hope you enjoy
Invisble Labour
Behind every school pickup, every translated homework sheet, every phone call to Medicare, is a woman living two lives: raising a child, and rebuilding herself
One mother put it simply: “Being a migrant mum, it’s not just about raising a good kid It’s doing that while reinventing yourself While asking for patience with every mistake We’re growing as they grow”
Even recognition is delayed LinkedIn only recently started acknowledging parental leave as professional experience Growing a human, raising it, nurturing it, all invisible on a CV
SisterProject
Invisble Labor
Motherhood as Migration
Echoes Across Generations
Volunteer Spotlight & News
The Quiet Chaos of BIrth
Why Sister Porject Exists
SISTERPROJECTORGAU/SPACEHIRE
The Quiet Chaos Of Birth
Even giving birth, that raw, powerful moment of creation, can feel disorienting
“My first birth, through a midwife centre, felt calm and spiritual,” said one woman “But my second, in hospital, was cold and bossy At home, birth is sacred That part was lost” Migrant women often enter the health system with no family support, unfamiliar protocols, and few interpreters. The system is built for the “default,” and too often, everyone else just has to adapt
1 in 3 babies in Australia is born to a migrant mother
A large study by UWA looked at over 250,000 births in Western Australia to understand how the migrant experience affects babies’ size and timing at birth
It found that new migrant mothers were more likely to have smaller babies but less likely to deliver early, while those who had lived in Australia longer had babies with heavier birth weights by Australian standards but faced a higher chance of early births
These findings highlight the real challenges many migrant women face from stress and navigating unfamiliar healthcare systems to delays in getting the care they need The researchers emphasise the importance of offering extra care and support to help migrant mothers and their babies thrive, especially those still settling into their new home
info@sisterproject.org.au
https://www.sisterproject.org.au/
“We grow as they grow”
-Paloma
“It Takes a Village...”
That’s where Sister Project comes in Created by migrant women, for migrant women, we’re here to say:
You’re not alone
You’re not overreacting And no, it’s not just a sandwich
It’s the weight of expectations The clash of cultures The invisible labour of starting over while keeping everyone else together And we see it because we’ve lived it
Whether it’s through coffee meetups, culturally safe workshops, or simply someone who speaks your language, both literally and emotionally, we create space for stories to be heard, for joy to be shared, and for strength to be recognised Because we’re not just raising children
We’re rebuilding our sense of self We’re carrying generations forward.
And in the process we’re raising ourselves, too