24th Anti-Racist Festival of Athens

7,8 and 9 of July, Veikou Grove, Galatsi.
[View location here]

We are ready for the 24th Anti-Racist Festival of Athens:
“The fences are narrowing the width of our world!”

Thousands of refugees have been victims of illegal pushbacks to Turkey by the Greek authorities in recent years. Thousands of people are unrecorded as they are abducted as soon as they arrive on the islands or left unsupported for days and weeks at parts of Evros, beaten and robbed before being sent back to “safe” Turkey.

Thousands of refugee families have been forced to move out of the apartments for vulnerable groups of the program ESTIA, while refugee children are leaving the classrooms they were attending and are forced to follow their families to refugee camps outside the cities without any provision for their health and education.

Thousands of children born and/or raised here are forced to take “patriotism” exams in order to acquire their self-evident social and political rights.

Thousands of migrants who have been living and working in the country for years, are queuing in Petrou Ralli for renewal of their residence permit with the anxiety of rejection surrounding their lives and choices.

Thousands of workers in the fields, on construction sites, on motorbikes, walking with their eyes down, avoiding the police, afraid to ask their boss for their salaries.

Thousands of citizens embrace the racist outburst of the government and pretend not to see. In the run-up to the elections, they are jointly asking for higher fences, more obstacles to obtaining “papers”, more exploitation of migrants in the workplace.

Our answer: The fences are narrowing the width of our world!

The Anti-Racist Festival of Athens brings with it the momentum and the will of many who stand with immigrants against racism. Their willingness to come together, to dance, to embrace, to turn the strain into a collective tear, a collective laughter.

In contrast to the official state celebrations and parades, the Anti-Racist Festivals are our celebrations, the celebrations of the grassroots, and are here to demonstrate the value of solidarity and struggle.

The 24th Anti-Racist Festival of Athens sheds light beyond the shadow of the elections and racist state policies. It mixes races, languages, tastes and sounds, challenging domination as much as it can.

Through the participation of migrant communities, discussions, screenings, cuisines, concerts, educational events, photo exhibitions, the Festival is one of the most important political and cultural events of the city.

But much more, it is here to highlight and support the struggles FOR SOLIDARITY, EQUALITY, DIGNITY, PARTICIPATION.

For a world without wars, nationalism, racism and oppression.

We deserve a better tomorrow!

The full program of this year’s 24th Anti- Rascist Festival of Athens

THE DISCUSSIONS :

Friday, July 7

Evros – Aegean: Border militarization – Criminalization of Solidarity and freedom of movement.
Culture – Struggle – Emancipation
Gypsies : ghettoization and state violence.

Self-organised event (19.30):

“From Qatar to Greece: Petrodollars – sportswashing & geopolitics, towards the 2030 World Cup” – Humba Magazine
Book presentation (19.00):
“The German Revolution (1917-1923) by Pierre Broué”, Ergatiki Pali Publications 100 years since 1923 – Lessons of a defeat”

Saturday, July 8

Pensions and labour rights: the harsh reality of migrants
“The far right today in Greece and internationally. New challenges for the anti-fascist movement.”
Greece-Turkey : Us, the people have nothing to divide

Self-organised event (19.30):

“Degrowth, Localization, Direct Democracy: The Importance of George Kolemba’s Work for Movements”, Babylonia Magazine
Book presentation:
“Intangible Motherhood: Contemporary aspects of motherhood in crisis conditions”, by A. Kosyfologou, E. Kanaveli, Plithos Publications

Sunday, July 9

Racism and public speech.
Public goods: ‘We claim the life we deserve’.
Trafficking and sexist violence

Self-organised event (19.30):

“Taking back our cities”: discussion for a unifying and radical intervention in the field of local government, Coordination of self-governing Schemes

THE MUSIC PROGRAM

The music scene of the Antiracist Festival this year- as every previous one- is trying to bring sounds from every part of the world, from every genre. Musical scenes that capture the world we want: without borders, with a thousand languages and a thousand colors. In our festival we have two scenes (migrant’s / folk and central). Walk around the campus to listen to Kurdish hip hop, dance African dances, drink your wine to sounds from the islands. However, you can expect much more by reading our music programme.

The concerts of the 24th Anti-Racist Festival (7, 8 & 9 of July, Veikou Grove, Galatsi) per day:

Friday, July 7

Migrant’s / folk stage

Yeelen : African dance and music school and group
Las Galoperas de Atenas (Dance from Paraguay)
Mandela Girls (South African danse)
Kasapi & Diwata – dance “Alitaptap” || Vincentian Marian Youth (VMY) dances “Thinkling” & “Binabatan” (Filipino traditional dance)
Kinteria (traditional island feast)
Assimazeftoi (Epirus feast)

Main stage

Urban LYNX
Jako
Xara
Taf Lathos
Vevilos

Saturday, July 8

Migrant’s / folk stage

Social Reintegration Music Group 18 Ano
Mohammad Reza (Afghan refugee)
Abismo (Abyssos)
Neighbourhood Art
Renovatio
Mandares (traditional feast)

Main stage

Rolling dice
Frank Panx & Saltadoroi
Allos Kosmos
Mora sti Fotia
Naxatras

Sunday, July 9

Migrant’s / folk stage

Stand up Comedy with Vyronas Theodoropoulos (more TBA soon!)
Lust Minute live (Filipino pop)
Martha Moreleon & Los del Sur
Cretan Feast with Pantelis Kyramargios, George Nikiforou Zervakis, Argyris Loulatzis
Loulantzis

Main stage

Medz Bazaar
Bianco Rosas
Rita Antonopoulou & Revans

And a surprise! On Friday 07/07 and Saturday 08/07, from 7:30 p.m., visitors to the Anti-Racism Festival will be welcomed with African scenes and Sembe and Djembe lolo music !

THE MULTICULTURAL CUISINES

The festival is always a gastronomic journey! We set the table at the 24th Anti-Racist Festival with delicious tests from many countries.

The Migrant’s Cuisines are waiting to take you on a journey on 7, 8 and 9 July. For the Anti-Racist Festival, authentic multi-ethnic cuisines, from communities and groups, are a tradition! Savoury and sweet flavours from many corners of the globe: Egypt, Ethiopia, Afghanistan, Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Kurdistan, Philippines, Sudan, Congo, Morocco, etc. And this year they will operate with chips for better service. The chips will be supplied by the kiosks in the area of the migrant kitchens.

Migrant Cuisines of the Anti-Racist Festival will feature flavors from:

Egypt, Ethiopia, Afghanistan, African Community vana ba afrika,North Sudan, Zimbabwe, Cameroon, Social Solidarity Network Turkey-Kurdistan, Congo, Kurdistan,Madagascar, Morocco, Mozambique, NIgeria, Nigerian Women, North Sudan, Solidarity Committee for Turkey-Kurdistan Political Prisoners, Philippines.

SWEETS

Egypt, African Community vana ba afrika, Cameroon, Congo, Morocco, Sudan, Social Network of Solidarity Turkey-Curdistan.

And of course as always, the Turkish cuisine, the rakadiko, the souvlaki of Felekis and the El Chef collective cuisine.

SCREENING PROGRAM

Friday, July 7

GOLDEN DAWN : A MATTER FOR ALL OF US

Saturda, July 8

WORKING DANCERS
HANTUSH – A FAIRY TALE
CAPTIVITY – INTERVIEWS (After the screenings there will be a discussion on the position and struggles of women)

Sunday, July 9

ETILAAT ROZ – Afghanistan 2022
STOP HUMAN TRAFFICKING
36 MONTHS – FIGHTING FOR ZAK/ZACKIE
EN OMONOIA

PHOTOGRAPHY EXHIBITIONS:

Marios Lolos – Refugee/Immigration
Aggelos Barai – Refugee/Immigration
Ilias Markou – Refugee/Migration
Aristotel Nikolli – Refugee/Immigration
Social ambulance (Accommodation Facilities for Unaccompanied Minor Refugees)
Photos of Unaccompanied Refugee Minors
Meropi Stavrinou – CAPTIVITY/Iranian Women
Anna Charalambidi – Housing: Refugees / Squats
Maro Kouri – Water
Nikitas Sifonios – Roma

Ruma space at the Antiracist Festival

Sastipén Tali – Health and Freedom

After the event “Racism, State Violence and Social Exclusion Roma community facing” at last year’s Festival, as a response to the violence against the Gypsy community, mainly by the state, with the murder of Nikos Sabanis and Kostas Fragoulis, we decided this year at the Festival to connect even more with the Roma Community, their culture and their struggles.

That is why this year the international Roma community has a special presence and its own space in the big celebration of the three-day Anti-Racist Festival of Athens, its own “chandiri”, called Sastipén Tali.

The Andalusian gypsy wish Sastipén Tali in their own language, Caló, is a phrase they use every day, in every greeting, and it means Health and Freedom from any shackles that prevent you from moving forward in life.

It is obvious that anti-Gypsyism and Gypsy-phobia, as tools of state repression, result in the further ghettoization of the Gypsy community and its targeted socio-political neglect.

But these tactics have no place in the Anti-Racist Festival, qwhich is why the Roma Community will now celebrate with us every year unity and solidarity, values that were the basis of the creation of this great event.

Exhibitions:

Photography exhibition by Christoforos Kayabakis
Flamenco costume exhibition from the cloakroom of Compania Flamenca Sentimientos

Research presentations:

Auschwitz
Feminist Movement
School drop-out and Education
State Violence
Biography of La Singla, legendary flamenco dancer (Spain)
Biography of Papusza, the mother of Gypsy poetry (Poland)

Documentary and Events Programme:

Friday, July 7

18:00 Seminar “The clapping in the Art of Flamenco” Taught by Isabella Galaiou
19:30 Screening of Tony Gatlif’s film “Latcho Drom”

Saturday, July 8

18:00 Seminar “The clapping in the Art of Flamenco” Taught by Isabella Galaiou
19:30 Flamenco dance by Compania Flamenca Sentimientos
20:30 Documentary by Giorgos Arpatzoglou “Where I live”

Sunday, July 9

18:00 Seminar “The clapping in the Art of Flamenco” Taught by Isabella Galaiou
19:30 Flamenco dance by Compania Flamenca Sentimientos
20:30 Screening of the speech of Dr.Angela Kocze at the European Roma Institute for Arts and Culture entitled “Romani Feminism, Intersectionality and LGBT Roma movement”

There will be a Wine Bar with herbs and spices.

PLAYGROUNG

The Anti-Racist Festival provides a specific space for our little friends!

At this year’s Anti-Racist Festival as always, on all three days the Playground will be open from 18:00 to 21:00, with activities for children, workshops and games! We will have a good time with our little friends, play, sing, listen to stories and learn to share the world so we can change it! We are waiting for you!

CHESS AT THE FESTIVAL!

Friday, July 7, 7pm

Gran Mert and a super champion of Greece in chess Anna Maria Botsari will simultaneously face everyone who wants to play with her from one game (simultaneous match).