UNHCR and Magnum photo agency focus on asylum in Europe
UNHCR teams up with the Magnum Photos to celebrate the lives of refugees and their impact on Europe over the past six decades
BRUSSELS, Belgium, June 15 (UNHCR) - As part of its 60th anniversary activities, UNHCR has teamed up with the prestigious Magnum Photos to celebrate the lives of refugees and their impact on Europe over the past six decades.
The light show "60 Years, 60 Lives," is appearing in cities across Europe as the annual World Refugee Day (June 20) approaches. It also pays tribute to the humanitarian achievements in Europe over the past 60 years.
The photos in the light show include six images of former refugees across Europe taken by Magnum photographers Antoine D'Agata and Moises Saman - one per decade. The remaining 54 images were provided by refugees who found sanctuary in Europe and each tells a story, condensed into one detail: the violin brought from home, their first document as a refugee, a family snap.
Venues for the light show include the façade of Malta's Fort St. Angelo, the Museumsquartier in Vienna and the Metro system in Rome as well as bars and restaurants in Brussels.
A special showing is planned for members of the European Council and senior European Union officials in the Belgian capital, while thousands of children from around the world will get to see "60 Years, 60 Lives" during the World Scout Jamboree in Sweden later this year. The show will be projected against the EU Parliament building in Brussels tomorrow and on Monday.
Today, refugees and asylum-seekers are often portrayed in a negative light in Europe. Some politics and media refer to refugees as a burden or a security threat. "This project aims at reframing the asylum debate. Tens of million of Europeans today are the children and grandchildren of refugees," said Melita Sunjic, UNHCR's spokesperson in Brussels.
The history of Europe as a safe haven for refugees is told in more detail on a special web site created by UNHCR and Magnum Photos and launched on Wednesday. The site includes details about the refugees depicted in the photographs, such as company director and former Vietnamese boat person Hien Kieu in the Netherlands and Aida Hadzuahmetovic, who found a safe haven in Slovenia after fleeing Sarajevo as a student in 1993.
Magnum is a cooperative photographic agency founded by legends Robert Capa, Henri Cartier-Bresson, George Rodger and David "Chim" Seymour just three years before UNHCR in 1947. Magnum photographers have documented practically every refugee crisis that UNHCR has been involved in. Some of the most iconic Magnum pictures show refugees.
For more information, go to: http://www.60years60lives.org
Related news and stories
In Belgium, Afghan teen dreams of empowering girls at home
Somali teenager sets her hopes high for the future
Syrian girl's imagination undaunted by war and upheaval
Syrian teen has a chance to dream again in Austria
UNHCR, Annenberg photo exhibit highlights refugee grit
Lesvos: Crossing to safety
Your search for « WORLD REFUGEE DAY » matched 7371 results. Only the first 1,000 results are displayed. Displaying page 10 of 112 pages.
-
World Refugee Day homes in on solutions for refugees
18 Jun 2004 ... 18 June 2004 GENEVA - UNHCR and its partners around the globe are marking World Refugee Day on Sunday (June 20) with a variety of special events and activities focusing on this year's theme, "A ...... -
On World Refugee Day, Guterres says refugee protection more challenging
19 Jun 2008 ... Thursday, 19 June 2008 GENEVA - Marking World Refugee Day on Friday 20 June, UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres said that providing protection for refugees today is vastly more ...... -
Refugees deserve praise for resilience and courage
20 Jun 2017 ... UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi on World Refugee Day 2017 GENEVA – The world’s 65 million refugees deserve praise for their resilience and courage and those who receive them ...... -
UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi's message on World Refugee Day - 20 June 2021
19 Jun 2021 ... What will their futures hold? What opportunities will they have to achieve their potential? Today, World Refugee Day, should serve as a stark reminder to politicians of the need to do more to ...... -
Afghan-Canadian refugee artist designs World Refugee Day Twitter emoji
14 Jun 2021 ... UNHCR and Twitter commissioned Afghan-Canadian artist Hangama Amiri to create the emoji for World Refugee Day, celebrated each year on 20 June. It is the first time the emoji has been designed by a ...... -
World Refugee Day: Guterres highlights plight of Somali refugees in World Refugee Day mission
18 Jun 2008 ... In a visit to the sprawling Dadaab refugee camp on the Kenya-Somalia border in advance of World Refugee Day on Friday, Guterres also praised the Kenyan people and government for their long record of ...... -
World Refugee Day: In a new exhibition, refugee children photograph their own lives
20 Jun 2008 ... The exhibition of 30 photos taken by the children themselves, entitled "Do You See What I See?" opened for World Refugee Day (June 20) in Namibia and starts next week in the refugee camp in Yemen ...... -
World Refugee Day: Thousands attend fair as Ecuador kicks off World Refugee Day early
18 Jun 2007 ... QUITO, Ecuador, June 18 (UNHCR) - More than 25,000 people flocked to a cultural and trade fair in the capital Quito at the weekend as Ecuador kicked off World Refugee Day celebrations early. ...... -
World Refugee Day 2004: Belarus
20 Jun 2004 ... All participants who reached the final stage of the contest were given UNHCR diplomas and T-shirts featuring the World Refugee Day logo to remember the event. From 4 to 6 June, the UNHCR office in ......