Before you book your Ryanair flight, can we talk about gentrification in Greece, please? by Niki Stavrianou
Most of the time, when l say l am from Greece, people feel the need to inform me about which island they have visited. Sometimes, this comes from a genuine need for connection, the blind adherence to social norms around small talk, a consumeristic mindset reinforced by capitalism, or just a deeply encoded colonialism.
Due to my traumatic experience of being born in Greece, which led me to immigrate to the UK in 2015 - so l will be able to work in my field, with my basic human and working rights in place - I always feel the need to inform them, that my country may look like heaven to them, but it is actually a living hell or the final destination for many refugees, who die in our seas.
Greece is the land where democracy was born ..and died, especially when our own government dismissed our referendum about whether we wanted to be forced into deeper debt or not. I feel I owe it to all the people who have been murdered by the police and the Neo-Nazi party of Golden Dawn to shed light on all the atrocities that our current government has committed.
In my country, besides the police having guns without passing any psychological assessment, and having 28 femicides per year, there are no discrimination acts in place to protect people from injustice. The minimum wage is around 600-700 Euros, while due to the economic opportunities, known as an economic crisis, foreign investors have bought all public infrastructure and houses to turn them into Airbnb accommodations. Consequently, people in Greece cannot afford to rent due to the housing crisis and often still live with their parents, even in their 30s or 40s.
At some point, when I feel I have educated people enough or made them feel awkward, I stop talking about all the crimes that our corrupt government has committed against refugees, nature, and Greek people. I smile, knowing that I have performed my duty, before I give them great restaurant recommendations to consume.
Niki Stavrianou is a psychologist and psychotherapist who has a great passion for photography and the arts. Her work as both a photographer and psychotherapist explores themes of urban isolation, mental health, and absence. She aims to capture a moment in time that reflects the interconnectedness of individuals, their surroundings, and the history of the place they inhabit. For Niki, a successful photo is one that evokes a sense of mystery and intrigue within the viewer when displayed. She seeks to encapsulate the essence of a person or place at a specific moment and present it through her lens for others to contemplate and interpret in their own way. She encourages her audience to explore the spaces between what is said and unsaid, to embrace the silence and to engage with the image on a deeper level.
Niki's style of photography relies primarily on natural light, as she believes it captures images as they truly are. She refrains from using software to manipulate the narrative of a photo. Instead, she uses a full-frame sensor DSLR camera paired with various lenses to showcase her subjects in an authentic and fair manner that caters to their individual needs.
