A “healing” mural paves the way for Refugee Week Greece

A large colorful mural with the word “freedom” written in 17 different languages welcomes the students, refugees and migrants, of the Migrant Integration Center – KEM, of the City of Athens. This was the number of languages spoken by the participants who spent three days creating the mural together, through participatory art, kinesiology and music composition workshops.

The well-known non-profit organization ‘The Goodness Tour’, based in California, visited the premises of the KEM in late May, completing an arts and music tour that had previously passed through Lefkada island and Ioannina, as part of the first participatory event of the cultural festival “Refugee Week Greece”. The events in Athens and Ioannina were supported by UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency in Greece.

In Athens, unaccompanied children hosted in a shelter run by the NGO Medin, as well as adult students who attend the social inclusion activities of KEM, participated in the workshops. The regular activities at KEM include Greek, English and computer courses.

The four-member team of The Goodness Tour, with passion and talent, managed to inspire and encourage the participants in the most direct way: by grabbing brushes, paints, papers and a guitar and creating a safe space for everyone to share as they wish.

“Painting was a very interesting experience,” an unaccompanied child from Somalia said, “but most of all I liked it when everyone had the opportunity to demonstrate to others the music and dance of their country. We got to know people from different cultures, like Brazil!”

Benjamin Swatez, artist and co-founder of The Goodness Tour, has visited our country before, and has coordinated similar activities in refugee facilities, prisons and orphanages. During their stay in Athens, the group worked with children and adults from more than 10 different countries. The mural aimed to represent their diversity and voice.

“One of the participating children had never drawn a face in their life. At the end of our first meeting, everyone had drawn faces, even with features that expressed their feelings. It was an amazing day, an opportunity to celebrate life together,” said Benjamin.

“In our actions around the world, whether one person takes part or a hundred, this one person who will show up is what matters. Like in Ioannina, where an elderly man who hadn’t painted in years came to our mural activity and also brought along his grandchildren”, he added.

School students, grassroot groups, facilities hosting refugees and unaccompanied children and local authorities engaged in The Goodness Tour in the three cities of their visit in Greece, implemented in collaboration with the Greek organization AMAKA.

In addition to UNHCR, the action in Athens was also supported by the Special Secretariat for the Protection of Unaccompanied Minors. Three murals were completed at the KEM, focusing on humanity, freedom and love, as well as a piece named “Inclusion”, which will be placed at the entrance of the KEM’s services. The murals highlight in the best possible way the message of this year’s Refugee Week Greece – “healing”. This is the main message of all the actions embraced by the festival, which is taking place in Greece for the first time under the initiative of the Athens Comics Library. Activities are expected to peak between June 20 and 26, on the occasion of World Refugee Day, which is marked on 20 June.

An improvised concert was held at the intersection of Mezonos and Psaron streets at the entrance of the KEM, where Luc Reynaud, the other co-founder of The Goodness Tour and creator of the band “Luc and the Lovingtons”, bade farewell with his iconic “Freedom Song”. Unaccompanied children, aid organizations, the staff of the KEM, as well as the children from the neighborhood who rushed to join and follow the rhythm of his music enjoyed the concert immensely.

“If you do nothing, nothing will ever change. Even smiling at somebody on the street, you never know, it might inspire them to continue breathing and do something nice for the next person” was the last message shared by the artists before leaving for their next destination.

You can find out more about the events and agenda of the Refugee Week Greece here: www.refugeeweek.gr

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