November 28, 2018
"Looking back on that time, Rasha says, 'my brain was frozen'. Eventually, they had to flee again. The constant change, loss of stability, and separation from her family caused Rasha to become very depressed. Her daughter, who was now 5 years old, would come to her and ask, "Mother, why are you crying?" This lasted until very recently, when Rasha realized she must be strong for her family, and never give up hope."
September 10, 2018
We only have ten days to go until the launch of this year's Berlin Human Rights Film Festival!🎥🕊️If you still haven't decided which screenings to attend, then here is a helpful list of migration focused movies you should definitely check out. 🔍 See you all there! 💖
8 Borders, 8 Days
Sham, a fierce single mother of two from Syria, wants to provide her children with a safe life and future. When the situation in the country critically worsens, Sham applies for a resettlement to the US, which is denied. The only possibility she is left with is to flee Syria illegally, risking her children’s lives on an uncertain and dangerous odyssey to increasingly unwelcoming Europe.
8, Lenin Avenue
Moved by a desire of justice and truth, the two filmmakers Valérie Mitteaux und Anna Pitoun, follow Salcuta Filan and her Roma family for over fifteen years. After leaving her home country, Romania, the widow and single mother of two arrives in a little community in the subur...
June 29, 2018
Following on from last weekend's photography exhibition, 'The Art of Black and White', we take a closer looks at some of our favourite photographs, and reflect on the power of Art as a medium for communication.
Last weekend, Pass The Crayon teamed up with the local art gallery, Berlin Blue Art to present a collection of photographs taken from artists from around the world. The photos were chosen from a selection of pictures sent in from artists across the globe, collated via the online photography platform, GuruShots. Each picture was completely different in style and skill level, but all pictures were ccohesively in black and white.
What really stood out was the individual perspective of each frame. There was not one picture that didn’t capture the esoteric beauty of the subject. It was amazing to see something as mundane as a set of hands folded. It was photographed in a light which made it seem so intensely realistic it looked as though the hands were so worn that they were made...
June 26, 2018
We are honoured and grateful to be chosen by GuruShots as the beneficiary of the proceeds from their recent exhibition, "The Art of Black and White".
On Friday June 22, 2018, The Berlin Blue Wall Art Gallery hosted the GuruShots event, “The Art of Black and White.” GuruShots is an online gallery where everyone is encouraged to submit their photographs or other types of media expressing their artwork.
This online photography platform has helped to revolutionize the way we consume and rate our art. Rather than be dictated to by critics, Gurushots, uses a community voting system which allows artists from all over the world the opportunity to promote their art, and discover and connect with other artists on the same path.
This event presented photographs by artists and organizations world-wide: it showcased over 600 pictures from 90 different countries. The goal of the exhibit was to create a provocative and fascinating example of what refugees, and other individuals fleeing their...
June 7, 2018
Upcycling nonprofit, Mimycri, turn abandoned lifeboats used to carry migrants across the Mediterranean, into stylish bags and accessories. I attended their recent fashion show to find out more...
The first bag on the runway was a rucksack made of pink, black, white and green canvas pieces, stitched together in a stylish geometric design. More and more models strode proudly down the catwalk sporting a mixture of satchels, holdalls, bumbags and rucksacks, each one totally unique.
Hassan was present at the fashion show, where he and a co-worker introduced the show by saying a few words in German. It was heartwarming to see how much pride and thought had gone into the whole event, and to see newcomers actively involved in the process, every step of the way.
Image via UNHCR
As I watched the canvas creations emerge on the runway, many thoughts ran through my head: How many lives have those life rafts helped to save? And, how many had they lost? How would I feel, as a refugee who had perhaps trav...
May 6, 2018
'You, Me, and The Distance Between Us', by Ellen Murial, portrays the reality of migrant camp life in all of its dirt, distress, boredom and banality. It also dissects the life of its volunteers, who very rarely get considered as more than a bunch of earnest drones searching for a cause.
I went to watch 'You, Me and The Distance Between Us' a few weeks ago. The performance took place at M29 Theatre, a community housing project located near Gesundbrunnen. Pillows were strewn across the floor, the ambiance mellow, the room packed with people. The lights suddenly go down, the room goes quiet, and a lone figure stands on stage.
Ellen Muriel introduces herself, providing us with a brief bio of her volunteering experience. Almost imperceptibly, her cadence shifts from normal dialogue to spoken word, possibly as a way of juxtaposing 'volunteer' Ellen, with 'performer' Ellen. I wondered, how will Ellen successfully manage to emb...
March 20, 2018
On International Women's Day, I attended 'Frauen und Flucht: Vulnerabilität – Empowerment – Teilhabe', an event which gave a platform for grassroots female refugee initiatives to discuss ways in which we can start to prioritize refugee women's voices more within the wider refugee discourse.
On March the 8th, I saw a lot of women walking around holding red roses (at first I was confused before guessing it had something to do with IWD), and later on, as I walked along Kottbusser Damm, I encountered the International Women's Day March itself- banners with empowering slogans waved proudly in the air, papier mache vaginas floated in the breeze, voices boomed from megaphones and music pumped from speakers. I turned down Lenaustrasse feeling pleased that I had witnessed the march, and invigorated for tonight's event. I arrived at Refugio, the community space for refugees, and host for "Women and Flight: Vulnerability, Empowerment and Parti...
March 4, 2018
Israel’s new migration policy has been met with strong condemnation from the international community, and from Israeli citizens themselves. I recently attended the event, ‘Refugee Crisis in Israel: Live Witness Accounts’ to find out more about this issue.
(torture method used in Eritrea- drawn by an Eritrean, and provided to the UN Commission of Inquiry)
The Eritrean refugee community, along with other African minority groups have been living peacefully in Israel for many years under "temporary protection"- they can speak Hebrew, they work, and some have started families of their own. They have applied for asylum, but their applications have either been ignored, or declined. Despite asylum acceptance rates for Eritreans in the EU resting at 91.4%, only 10 Eritreans and 1 Sudanese have been accepted as refugees in Israel- this is despite Israel being one of the first countries to sign the 1961 UN Refugee Declaration.
After explaining the history of migrants in Israel, Itay Mashia...
December 24, 2017
Last Thursday, Pass the Crayon attended WelcomeBazaar; an amazing Christmas market hosted by our friends at WelcomeCamp, Media Residents and Refugees Welcome.
December 24, 2017
A few weeks ago Pass the Crayon attended the re-opening of the Delphi Theatre: a wonderful retro space, with serious Roaring Twenties vibes....