Little Amal, a 12-foot puppet of a Syrian refugee, to visit San Antonio this weekend

San Antonians will have four opportunities to ‘Walk with Little Amal’

FILE - A 12-foot puppet of a 10-year-old Syrian refuge named Little Amal walks around Grand Central Station in New York, on Sept. 15, 2022. Little Amal will journey across the United States this fall, visiting key places in Americas history in an attempt to raise awareness about immigration and migration. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File) (Seth Wenig, Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

SAN ANTONIO – A 12-foot puppet known as Little Amal will stop in San Antonio for two days as part of her 6,000-mile trek across the country from Boston to the U.S.-Mexico border.

Little Amal is a depiction of a young Syrian refugee and was created as an art and social project to raise awareness internationally about immigration and migration.

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The City of San Antonio’s Department of Arts & Culture, Office of the Immigration Liaison, and multiple arts, education and social service organizations worked together to create free public events to welcome Little Amal to the city.

“We’re proud to partner with such incredible local organizations to spread Amal’s message of hope,” said Department of Arts & Culture Executive Director Krystal Jones. “Her journey shows how art can be a tool for understanding and spark conversations on difficult subjects.”

There will be four free public festivals in San Antonio where people can see Little Amal up close:

  • Auntie’s Shopping List: Oct. 21 at Noon - Little Amal will be at the House of Prayer Lutheran Church for a Welcome Walk & Festival. The event was organized in partnership with Culturingua, NEISD Welcome Center and The Tobin Center for the Performing Arts.
  • Dreaming of Lights: Oct. 21 from 6-10 p.m. - Little Amal will be at Hemisfair during the Luminaria Contemporary Arts Festival. The event is in partnership with Luminaria and URBAN-15.
  • Who Am I?: Oct. 22 at 2 p.m. - Little Amal will be at Lions Field Park. The event was organized in partnership with The DoSeum and Lions Field Park.
  • A House to Call My Own: Oct. 22 at 7 p.m. - Little Amal will be at Confluence Park for an event with artists Ashley Mireles and Anthony Rundblade, with support from the San Antonio River Foundation, San Antonio Area Foundation, and District 3 City Council Office.
A photo of Little Amal in Toronto. ((c)2023 Taku Kumabe)

Little Amal has traveled through more than 14 countries since 2021. The puppet has been on her U.S. journey since Sept. 7, visiting 40 towns and cities. Her Texas stops include Houston, Austin, San Antonio, Marfa and El Paso. After Texas, she will stop along the U.S. border in Arizona and will conclude her tour in California on Nov. 5.


About the Author

Julie Moreno has worked in local television news for more than 25 years. She came to KSAT as a news producer in 2000. After producing thousands of newscasts, she transitioned to the digital team in 2015. She writes on a wide variety of topics from breaking news to trending stories and manages KSAT’s daily digital content strategy.

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