Outcast Europe collection day and open celebration at Mesopotamia Solidarity School (8 April 2023)
Outcast Europe and Mesopotamia Solidarity School, after having collaborated for a series of educational activities in the context of the school’s classes, co-organised a collection day. Students and teachers of the school, members and friends of Mesopotamia – Moschato’s Residents Movement and residents of the surrounding areas (Kallithea, Piraeus, Tavros) gathered in Mesopotamia’s space, bringing with them items carrying symbolic significance related to their personal, familial or community stories of displacement and movement.
17 people narrated the stories of their objects and how their respective routes, starting from Asia Minor, Romania, Jordan, Russia, Congo, Ecuador, India, Turkey, Syria and places within Greece, reached South Athens, most notably the neighbourhood of Moschato.
People of the community were brought together and were encouraged and inspired to share their stories with us, but also with each other, realising the differences, but most importantly the similarities between experiences of migration during different eras, and from different places.
The collection process was followed by a celebration open to the public, where people brought food, especially traditional recipes from different cuisines around the world. It was a double celebration; a celebration of community and exchange of cultures and experiences, but also a celebration of the closing of the school for Easter holidays.
The items and stories that were collected during the collection day in Mesopotamia will be uploaded soon on Outcast Europe’s website.
For more information on Outcast Europe and to keep up to date with its activities, you can contact Hara Papadatou (papadatou@interaliaproject.com) or Nikos Papakostas (papakostas@interaliaproject.com), visit the website and follow on Facebook and Instagram.
