In June 2016, Stephan Said, traveled to several refugee camps across Greece to film the third episode borderless. Everywhere we went the stories from thousands of refugees we met were testaments of innocence, injustice and the struggle against despair. The power of hope we found in camps and communities across Greece will inspire us all.
‘No More Lines,’ a historic anthem by and with the refugees was recorded live on June 4, 2016 at the Eko Station camp near Polykastro, Greece. The video was released on Father’s Day and World Refugee Day to help raise the voices of all refugees and migrants worldwide.
More than anything else we heard from – refugees men, women and children from Syria, Iraq, Iran, Lebanon, Afghanistan, Pakistan and more; personnel of international agencies, local government, military; and to grassroots and local volunteers groups – was that the world needs to integrate and cooperate in order to better respond to this human and political crisis.
borderless visited numerous camps and settlements across Greece. Many of the makeshift camps have been evacuated since our visit in early June. We visited Piraeus Port, City Plaza, Victoria Park, and Monastiraki Plaza in Athens; Park Hotel filled with volunteers, NGOs and journalists, and EKO Station camp near Polykastro; and Nea Kavala camp, Hara Hotel, BP Gas Station camp, and Idomeni camp all near the Greek-Macedonian border.
Said was drawn to the issue in part because his own family members from Mosul, Iraq are now refugees. After ISIS invaded their neighbors property was bombed to the ground, and his aunt and cousins were forced to abandon everything and are now split between the Kurdish territories and across the border in Turkey. He says, “I’m using my voice and borderless to help us realize these are people just like us, like my own family, so we can change mindsets and mobilize action.”