The human rights violations of refugees in Lesvos, Greece have been widely documented by media and academia. However, less is known about the rights claims of the refugees, the lived experiences of the locals and the networks of care among them. Emerging at the intersection of academia, art and activism Arts into Acts documents how young people (refugees, asylum seekers and locals) negotiate borders and belongings in Lesvos. Since 2015, Lesvos has been crossed by millions of refugees on their way to Europe. The escalating humanitarian crisis has driven refugees and locals to despair, giving rise to xenophobic sentiments and nationalistic attacks. Arts into Acts is a Participatory Action Research project conducted online in times of Covid through a unique design of creative and digital methods which included interviews, a creative group and public performances aiming to contest borders of segregation, enable cultural encounters among refugees and locals and attend ethics of care. The findings show how creative and political acts land on (and often hide in) ordinary spaces of everyday life, addressing injustice through creating environments of care and solidarity, aiming to repair what is damaged.
Through this lecture, Boukouvala will share the project and its creative outputs. She will look at what is care, how it emerges at the intersection of gender, migration, racism and empowerment and how it can be maintained despite and in response to bordering practices.
Dr. Elena Boukouvala is a Participatory Action Researcher who works with migrant communities across Europe through creative and digital methods. Her academic background crosses the disciplines of Sociology, Dramatherapy and Psychology. She lectures in postgraduate education. She is the founder and artistic director of the international Play Perform Learn Grow conference which connects academics, artists and publics through creative methods.
Elena Yaqubee is a musician and an activist who has been searching for a home since she was born. After experiencing the effects of war, injustice, and oppression in her native Afghanistan, Elena fled her homeland for Iran, then traveled from Iran to Turkey, from Turkey to Greece, and from Greece to Germany. She traveled mainly by foot and by way of small illegal rubber boats. She recently applied for asylum in Germany and she is still looking for her home. Over the last few years, Elena has devoted herself to music, which has helped her to make sense of her life and express her feelings through the magic art of vibration which has empowered her to share her voice, her experiences, and her complicated journey. Not only do her poetry and music speak to Elena’s own life experiences, but they also speak on behalf of countless others, narrating the bitter realities shared by forgotten humans in voiceless countries.
Elena Yaqubee and Fabio Joel Tunno are currently working on different projects and they have been collaborating for more than three years. Fusing their ideas, experiences and talents together they decided to begin a journey of “ACTIVE ART” in which the main purpose is to find a path of hope for all those who lost their dreams among the ruins of war and injustice.
Elena and Joel's website: https://maida-maida.com/
Elena and Joel's YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@elena_joel
