A grandfather carries his granddaughter to safety during clashes between police and Antifa after the Pavlos Fyssas memorial demonstration. Fyssas, known in the Greek hip-hop scene as Killah P., was assassinated in 2013 by neo-Nazis of the Chrysi Avgi - or Golden Dawn - party. Athens, Greece 2015.
Children playing outside the "Solidarity Neighborhood initiative against the crisis". It is an initiative founded during the great protests at Syntagma Square in Athens in 2011. Approximately 60 active participants - mainly women over 50 - participate in the group. They organize food, tutoring and school materials. They support local families as well as other self-organized projects and struggles. Perama, Athens, Greece 2015.
Twice a month the members of the Solidarity Neighborhood initiative collect food in front of supermarkets. With this sign, they are calling on Perama to support their community kitchen which will serve 100 meals a day. Athens, Greece 2016.
A refugee eats in an empty field located in an abandoned area of Thessaloniki. The daily meal is prepared and distributed by "Philoxenia kitchen" and "Oikopolis", a social room in Thessaloniki which supports solidarity actions for refugees excluded from the state camps and housing programmes. Greece 2018.
A teenager takes a selfie with his family during the celebration of the six month existence of the "Best Hotel Europa." The City Plaza Hotel is a squat where more than 400 refugees take shelter. Athens, Greece 2016.
Yannis, one of the dentists at the Solidarity Clinic in Thessaloniki explains an x-ray to a Syrian refugee from the Softex camp. Dental treatment is possible here because the necessary equipment has been donated to the clinic. Greece 2016.
Muhammed, fantasy name, an Arab migrantreceives medical treatment in an empty field located in an abandoned area of Thessaloniki. Here the NGO “Doc Mobile†gives daily primary health services up to 50-70 refugees. Greece 2018.
Meeting at the pharmacy of the Solidarity Clinic "ElÃnnikon" in Athens during a power outage. With the refugee crisis and the economic crisis, the health system is not useful for many people. In the meantime, there is a health card for everyone but people still do not get medical treatment in many cases. Funds for the health system have not been increased, but there are one-third more insured persons. Athens, Greece 2016.
Barber shop at Softex refugee camp. The warehouse, where the tents are mounted, is part of a former toilet paper factory and sits in an industrial wasteland. The space is windowless, dim and scarcely ventilated. Thessaloniki, Greece 2016.
A child rides a bike between the tents of Softex refugee camp. The warehouse, where the tents are mounted, is part of what was a former toilet paper factory and sits in an industrial wasteland. The space is windowless, dim and scarcely ventilated. Thessaloniki, Greece 2016.
Privacy is rare in one of the classrooms used as dormitory, but refugees at the Jasmin school use blankets to have some. The Jasmin School, the oldest school building in Athens, offers shelter to about 300 refugees. Men, women and children live in this abandoned school, which is administered as a self organized space from refugees and activists. Athens 2016.
A father enjoys the fresh air with his child after a storm. Athens, Greece 2016. The Jasmin school is a squat for refugees, more than 400 families live in this abandoned school, which is administered as a self organized space from refugees and activists.
A storm has caught a group of refugees in the street. Yussef tries to save and dry his documents. Athens, Greece 2016. The Jasmin school is a squat for refugees, more than 400 families live in this abandoned school, which is administered as a self organized space from refugees and activists.
Miran, 35 years old from Pakistan, poses on his tide up shelter. He has been living for around two months on Thessaloniki streets trying to find a shelter. Every day he gets food from a solidarity group and he visits community centres all around the city in order to avoid the cold and to use basic facilities. In the city of Gujrat, where he lived, he worked as a lab technician in a hospital and was actively engaged in a party aimed at helping the poor of Pakistan. He decided to leave when the political situation made his life unbearable. Greece 2018.
Umer Sufyen poses in his new room. He left Pakistan three years ago and spent last winter homeless in abandoned buildings, parks and streets. Finally, he found a temporary house in "Oikopolis", a social room in Thessaloniki supporting solidarity actions for refugees expelled from state camps and organized housing programs. Greece 2018.
Activist of ‘’Pervolarides’’ (Gardeners) of Thessaloniki distributing food to homeless refugees who squat the “old buildingâ€. This incomplete concrete parking building near the railway station is the home of several homeless refugees. ‘’Pervolarides’’ is a non-profit group of people who believe in self-organisation and mobilisation through cooperation. One of its activities is a soup kitchen held by other refugees who prepare 50 meals 2-3 times a week for refugees left out of the state camps and organised housing programs. Greece 2018.
Migrants waiting to cross the border with Macedonia. When the border was still open, refugees could take a short break in the transit camp at Idomeni. They received water, fresh clothes and medical care from NGOs. In the large halls they could rest briefly or sleep for a night. Some 2,500 refugees were treated in one day before crossing the border into Macedonia by foot. However, the border was not always open. Idomeni, Greece 2015.
Clothes are hanging in the NATO wire at the Greek-Macedonian border near Idomeni. The refugees left behind everything they did not immediately need for their escape. Fast progress in the race against time is more important than clothes to wear. Unnecessary weight means slower progress. The fence grew with the European border regime. Originally only a landmark along the way indicated that you had just entered another country, it became NATO wire and NATO wire became a solid fence to prevent fugitives from looking for a decent life, far away from bombs and hardship. Idomeni, Greece 2015.
"SOS. Resistance to the golden death", says the destroyed entrance of Megali Panagia. In the nearest village to the open pit mine of Skouries, the atmosphere of a cold civil war between pro and anti mine movements can be felt. Halkidiki, Greece 2016.
Activists discuss next to a campfire to get mosquitoes out of the way and stay warm during the anti-mine summer camp "Ten days of struggle for Skouries" in Halkidiki. Around 50 people attend the camp organized by the committee of Megali Panagia to control the activities of Eldorado Gold and protest against the mining project in the region. Many other activists join the camp at night after work attending the conferences, assemblies and different concerts. Greece 2017.
View of the metallurgical floating plant in construction next to the Skouries open pit mine. The "flash smelting", the process that is going to be used, should produce pure gold. However Eldorado Gold presented plan is undergoing an arbitration to determine if the metallurgical process is applicable to the soil chemical composition. Halkidiki, Greece 2016.
A member of the Megali Panagia committee awaits his trial in front of the Polygyros court together with other committee members. Finally, they are declared not guilty in one of the many lawsuits that the authorities and Eldorado Gold have brought against them to slow down their activities. Polygyros, Greece 2017.
Works for the tailing dam located in the gorges formed by the rivers Karatzas and Lotsaniko. The tailing dam will contain the waste production of the Cassandra mine complex. To operate, both the mine and the tailing dam, the groundwater has to be lowered, using multiple drainage wells. This will cause the mountain to dry out, followed by soil erosion and flooding. 15 million cubic meters of water per year have been already pumped out of the mayor water reservoir of the region which is located in Skouries. Halkidiki, Greece 2017.
Giorgos and Elli, from the anti-mine movement, during a break from walnut harvest. They started the picking a few days late due to the court hearing in Polygyros. A large amount of walnuts have been already lost. Most of them eaten by boars or rotten due to the heavy rains. Skouries, Greece 2017.
View of the tailing dam located in the gorges formed by the rivers Karatzas and Lotsaniko. The trees there, some over 300 years old, have already been felled and 140-160 meters high dams are going to be built. Skouries-Halkidiki, Greece 2017.
Yussef, a 16-year-old unaccompanied refugee from Pakistan with a disability, trains at the Micropolis Fight Club. He trains with other 20 people in a small room of the social center for about two and a half hours. This group, formed by migrants and Greeks, uses this sport as a means of integration, solidarity and self-defence. Thessaloniki, Greece 2017.
Sparring Partners, women and men at training, the only difference is the belt. The Micropolis Fight Club is a self-organized, antifascist Martial art group against any hierarchical, racist, homophobic and sexist behaviour. Thessaloniki, Greece 2017.
Nicole, the chemist in the recovered industry "Bio.Me", pours distillate water in the mixer in order to prepare liquid bio soap. They have been producing for over 6 years self-managed and under worker control. Thessaloniki, Greece 2017.
Vangelis, the chemical engineer in the recovered industry "Bio.Me", stretches during production. Today there was a delay due to the lack of alcohol needed for soap production. With the two new chemical experts production can be risen and professionalized. Thessaloniki, Greece 2017.
Political activists make their canvas for votes going from bar to bar. During the election campaign in Greece 2015: "Stop all memoranda - old and new," is written on the sign of the activists of the left-wing radical electoral alliance ANTARSYA, who tries to win votes on the days just before the elections. Athens, Greece 2015.
People lay wreaths on a monument within the Polytechneio University for the students who have been killed during the uprising against the Junta in 1973. The commemoration ends traditionally with a demonstration that ends at the embassy. Athens, Greece 2016.
More and more Greeks are losing their homes because they can no longer pay their loans. It is hard to find a place to rent. In order to have a roof over the head, this pavilion, which originally served to protect park visitors from the sun or rain, has been converted into a shelter. Athens, Greece 2016.
Homeless shelter in a park. Many Afghans and Pakistani refugees are left out of the state camps and organised housing programs. The street is the only place left. Athens 2015.
Homeless shelter in a park. one year later. Many Afghans and Pakistani refugees are left out of the state camps and organised housing programs. The street is the only place left. Athens 2015.
View of the "old building". A refugee stands in this squatted incomplete parking concrete building near Thessaloniki railway station. The police have already closed the place three times but refugees find the way back in. After the last police raid the hygiene has get worst since the portable toilets brought by an NGO were taken away. Greece 2018.
After a long day of work members of the Social Clinic Thessaloniki, journalist and activists meet in a pub and discuss the economic and political situation until early morning. Thessaloniki, Greece 2016.
"No to foreclosures! No man without roof-water-electricity-heating-health care". Scream the members of the anti-eviction movement. They managed to bring the notary category in strike and to refuse to sign eviction notices. Thessaloniki, Greece 2017.
The Kitchen team of "Notará 26", a squat that many refugees call home, cooks during their turn the meal for the whole occupants in "Kannigos 22". This squat offer kitchen facilities to all the squats that haven't got one. Athens, Greece 2016. A Kitchen team of the squat "Notará 26" cooks for all its 200 inhabitants. They use the kitchen of "Kannigos 22" a squat which offers kitchen facilities to all the squats that haven't got one following a self-organized schedule. Athens, Greece 2016.
Children of three Iraqis families sit in a dirty couch where they will spend the night. It is the same empty field where the “Doc mobile†has its station. "They just arrived. 17 people in total. They do not know what to do. We bring them into contact with other organizations†says Rose Hansen in charge of the “Doc mobileâ€. Greece 2018.
Activists of Perama, the Solidarity Neighborhood initiative against the crisis, running their community kitchen which serves 100 meals a day. Athens, Greece 2018.
Residents of Perama district eating at the community kitchen which serves 100 meals a day and is managed by the activists of the Solidarity Neighbourhood initiative against the crisis. Athens, Greece 2018.
View of the "old building". A squatted incomplete parking concrete building near the railway station. Two inhabitants of the ruin eat the meal brought by Activist of ‘’Pervolarides’’ (Gardeners) of Thessaloniki. The police close the place with metal fences and metal scraps which make the place even more unsafe to leave in since any emergency evacuation is no longer possible. Greece 2018.
View of the “old buildingâ€. A squatted incomplete parking concrete building near the railway station. The police closed the place with metal fences and metal scraps which make the place even more unsafe to live in since any emergency evacuation is no longer possible. Greece 2018.
Homeless refugees living since 6 month in the “old buildingâ€, a squatted incomplete parking concrete building near the railway station. The police have already closed the place three times but refugee find the way back in. Even if condition are horrible there is a roof to be dry during winter. Thessaloniki 2018.
A car pass through an abandoned warehouse alley where prostitution is the now a day business. Behind the train station every evening in Thessaloniki, an unseen city is revealed. A group of invisible people, refugees who are homeless without access to water, food and restrooms. People who have come from the "wrong" countries and for whom neither the EU nor the Greek state provide any kind of social services. Greece 2018.
Homeless refugees gather around one of the cars of the "Philoxenia kitchen" - food and kindness collective, which everyday provides 400 meals. The number of homeless refugees in Thessaloniki are higher than last winter. It is indicative that approximately 80 people participated in the "Oikopolis" team food distribution program last year, while now they are over 200. Greece 2018.
Gulnoor and Hashima, fantasy names, enjoy the breakfast after preparing the food at the ‘’Pervolarides’’ (Gardeners) of Thessaloniki centre. This soup kitchen held by refugees, prepares 50 meals 2-3 times a week for refugees left out of the state camps and organised housing programs. When the food is ready and boxed they bring it by bus to the train station where other refugees distribute it to homeless. The bus ride to the train station can last a good two hours since they have to change three bus lines. The racist neighbourhood where they are located force them to obscure the windows of their bad illuminated cellar to hide their activities.There have been a couple of threats from unfriendly people. The association is looking for a new place to rent. Greece 2018.
Gulnoor and Hashima, fantasy names, cooking at the ‘’Pervolarides’’ (Gardeners) of Thessaloniki. This soup kitchen held by refugees, prepares 50 meals 2-3 times a week for refugees left out of the state camps and organised housing programs. When the food is ready and boxed they bring it by bus to the train station where other refugees distribute to homeless. The bus ride to the train station can last a good two hours since they have to change three bus lines. The racist neighbourhood where they are located force them to obscure the windows of their bad illuminated cellar to hide their activities. They have been a couple of threats from unfriendly people. The association is looking for a new place to rent. Greece 2018.
Gulnoor and Hashima, fantasy names, enjoying some music during the bus ride. Greece 2018. Refugees and Activists of ‘’Pervolarides’’ (Gardeners) of Thessaloniki enjoy some music while they ride the bus to the train station. They have to change 3 times and the travel to the train station can last a good two hours. ‘’Pervolarides’’ is a non-profit group of people who believe in self-organisation and mobilisation through cooperation. One of its activity is a soup kitchen held by other refugees who prepares 50 meals 2-3 times a week for refugees left out of the state camps and organised housing programs. Greece 2018.
With help of their interpreter, once a refugee as well, The “Doc Mobile†team have the possibility to treat refugees efficiently. Most of the cases dealt with are related to fever, musculoskeletal pains and dental problems. Many have wounds attained on their travels, in attempts to cross the border, or because they live in abandoned buildings. Often, they suffer from infections, skin diseases, headaches and, of course, colds. Thessaloniki, Greece 2018.
Activist charge the cars with the dinner for over 250 people. The Philoxenia kitchen - food and kindness collective that cooks daily at Oikopolis. Every day members of the collective go out onto the street near the old train station, tally the people who need food, then return in the evening to deliver it. Thessaloniki, Greece 2018.
Time to show off. A refugee dancing in an abandoned area of Thessaloniki. At the end of the shift of the “Doc Mobile†team, the interpreter and the refugees, who stick around for company, dance a traditional pashtun dance. New friendships ties have arose between volunteers and refugees. They have borrowed and learned the concept of self-organisation, solidarity and mobilisation through cooperation. They look after each other and do not compete for survive, they try to survive together. Greece 2018.
The communist block at the rally against the visit of Obama. Athens, Greece 2016.
Nuns supply food to Afghan migrants in the unofficial camp in Victoria square. Athens, Greece 2015.
A man recycles cardboards. Many people have taken on scavenging as a means of survival. Many families struggle to put food on the table and recycling goods is often the last resource of income. Athens, Greece 2015.
Refugees cross the border to Macedonia in small groups. The red cross camp is almost empty few days before the closure of the Macedonian border. In the next months thousand of migrants will be blocked in Idomeni. Greece 2015.
Perama's harbour view. This once rich harbour district, suffered especially from the crisis. Now in 2019 COSCO, the Chinese shipping operation company, which operates the port of Piraeus aim to make it number one across the region – actually the 8th busiest in Europe – and an entryway for Chinese goods, as a part of a new Silk Road plan. It will be the transit hub for all trade between Asia and Europe transforming Piraeus port into the biggest harbour in Europe. Greece 2015.
Scavenger at night. A man looks for usable goods in the trash. Many people have taken on scavenging as a living resource. Many families struggle to put food on the table and recycling goods is often the only work left. Thessaloniki, Greece 2015.
fire. pavlos fyssas
A man recycles cardboards. Many people have taken on scavenging as a means of survival. Many families struggle to put food on the table and recycling goods is often the last resource of income. Athens, Greece 2015.
