Jasmine School Refugee Housing: Athens, Greece - Day 11

|| 09/27/16 ||  Location - Jasmine School, Victoria - Athens, Greece || Read the full story here ||

City Plaza and Jasmine School Refugee Housing - Athens, Greece - Day 10

|| 09/26/16 ||  Location - City Plaza and Jasmine School, Victoria - Athens, Greece || Read the full story here ||

Alush Alowi, 4, of Syria, stands in the doorway of a condemned school in Athens, Greece where he and his family have been squatting for the past 2 months. The school houses over 400 refugees that are trapped in Greece after the majority of European countries closed their borders. The massive squat is run by the refugees for the refugees. This style of living is a viable alternative to the overcrowded/underfunded camps, and restores some of the basic human rights these individuals lost after leaving their home countries. This independence is directly correlated with an absence of racial tensions, and violent outbreaks. While condemned buildings are not the solution, these spaces temporarily give migrants a safe place to call home until they are approved for asylum. 

The Good Life - Series 12 - Greece: Day 7, 8, and 9

|| 09/23-24/16 || Location - Athens and Lesvos, Greece || Lycabettus Hill || 
|| Shot with - Nikitas Stoned || 

*After some unexpected computer/camera problems that could not be fixed on the island, I decided to head back to Athens before Albania, Montenegro, and Croatia. Not to worry. I'll be heading down to the City Plaza Hotel (an abandoned hotel being used as refugee housing) tomorrow to begin shooting with some migrant families living there. In the meantime, here are some shots from my last day in Lesvos/first day back in Athens.*

The summit of Lycabettus Hill. It is the highest point in Athens, sitting at around 900ft above sea level.

An abandoned theater just below the summit of Lycabettus Hill.

Migrants wait outside as the lobby is cleaned in the City Plaza Hotel. The once abandoned structure is now being reutilized to assist struggling refugees unable to leave Athens. In order to stay, you must work in some capacity. This could mean cleaning, office work, laundry service, or babysitting. "Here, if you want to stay, you must contribute," the receptionist commented. 

Clothes hang to dry on blaconies of the City Plaza Hotel. The once abandoned structure is now being reutilized to assist struggling refugees unable to leave Athens. In order to stay, you must work in some capacity. This could mean cleaning, office work, laundry service, or babysitting. "Here, if you want to stay, you must contribute," the receptionist commented. 

The summit of Lycabettus Hill. It is the highest point in Athens, sitting at around 900ft above sea level.

Coastal hotel, turkish archetecture, afternoon adventure 

This is Nikitas Stoned. He is a 19-year-old, 354 lb, 6ft 3in Russian who's family immigrated to Lesvos before he was born. Nikitas and I met while I edited photos in the cafe next door to where he works. He is currently still in high school, and aspires to be a professional security guard. He currently works at some of the local clubs on the island. "Sometimes I have to beat people up. Mostly Albanians. They all carry knives, and cause trouble. I'm not sure why," he explained. "Most of the time I just punch them once. Twice might kill them." Nikitas also helps at the local car rental office in downtown Mytiline. You can most likely catch him walking his 3-month old pug around the port on a sunny afternoon.

Coastal hotel, turkish archetecture, afternoon adventure

This is Nikitas Stoned. He is a 19-year-old, 354 lb, 6ft 3in Russian who's family immigrated to Lesvos before he was born. Nikitas and I met while I edited photos in the cafe next door to where he works. He is currently still in high school, and aspires to be a professional security guard. He currently works at some of the local clubs on the island. "Sometimes I have to beat people up. Mostly Albanians. They all carry knives, and cause trouble. I'm not sure why," he explained. "Most of the time I just punch them once. Twice might kill them." Nikitas also helps at the local car rental office in downtown Mytiline. You can most likely catch him walking his 3-month old pug around the port on a sunny afternoon.

Moria Refugee Camp: Lesvos, Greece - Day 4 and 5

|| 09/20-21/16 ||  Location - Moria Refugee Camp and Mytiline: Lesvos, Greece ||

A Syrian migrant sports fresh bandages after allegedly being beaten by Greek police in the Moria Refugee Camp. Countless others were also injured in a riot that destroyed over 60% of the facility. The riots were initiated by refugees due to internal racial disputes and the endless delay in immigration processing. "We don't want their food, we don't want their water, we just want to leave," one Pakistani migrant said. This entrapment is far from over, with the majority of European countries refusing to accept refugees at this time. "We left our countries to escape war. Now we are forced to live like this," an injured Nigerian migrant explained.

Children play ball amidst burnt tree trunks caused by a riot the night before. 

A Syrian migrant shows his wounds after allegedly being beaten by Greek police in the Moria Refugee Camp. Countless others were also injured in a riot that destroyed over 60% of the facility. The riots were initiated by refugees due to internal racial disputes and the endless delay in immigration processing. "We don't want their food, we don't want their water, we just want to leave," one Pakistani migrant said. This entrapment is far from over, with the majority of European countries refusing to accept refugees at this time. "We left our countries to escape war. Now we are forced to live like this," an injured Nigerian migrant explained.

Food with dirt and mud in it. "They give us rabbit food," one Nigerian refugee said.  

A Syrian migrant shows his wounds after allegedly being beaten by Greek police in the Moria Refugee Camp. Countless others were also injured in a riot that destroyed over 60% of the facility. The riots were initiated by refugees due to internal racial disputes and the endless delay in immigration processing. "We don't want their food, we don't want their water, we just want to leave," one Pakistani migrant said. This entrapment is far from over, with the majority of European countries refusing to accept refugees at this time. "We left our countries to escape war. Now we are forced to live like this," an injured Nigerian migrant explained.

Volunteers fix a burnt barbed wire fence along the perimeter of the camp. 

A Syrian migrant shows his wounds after allegedly being beaten by Greek police in the Moria Refugee Camp. Countless others were also injured in a riot that destroyed over 60% of the facility. The riots were initiated by refugees due to internal racial disputes and the endless delay in immigration processing. "We don't want their food, we don't want their water, we just want to leave," one Pakistani migrant said. This entrapment is far from over, with the majority of European countries refusing to accept refugees at this time. "We left our countries to escape war. Now we are forced to live like this," an injured Nigerian migrant explained.

Two Syrian migrants fish off the dock in the port of Mytiline

A Syrian boy fishes for dinner as a family of tourists relaxes on their 26-foot sailboat in the port of Mytiline. "The food is no good," the boy said as he tapped his stomach and pointed in the direction of the Moria Refugee camp. Many refugees walk the nearly 16 kilometer round trip each day in hopes of a fresh catch to feed their families.

A Syrian migrant fishes off the dock in the port of Mytiline

A Syrian migrant shows off his catch for the day on a dock in the port of Mytiline

A Syrian boy fishes for dinner as a family of tourists relaxes on their 26-foot sailboat in the port of Mytiline. "The food is no good," the boy said as he tapped his stomach and pointed in the direction of the Moria Refugee camp. Many refugees walk the nearly 16 kilometer round trip each day in hopes of a fresh catch to feed their families.

Moria Refugee Camp: Lesvos, Greece - 9:00pm Day 3

|| 9:00pm 09/19/16 || Beginning of Moria Riots || Location - Moria Refugee Camp, Lesvos, Greece ||

Migrants and police look on as one of the largest camps in Lesvos burns to the ground. The violence began early this morning with small incidents of rock throwing and trash burning, but quickly worsened as the day went on. According to several South African refugees, the massive blaze was started due to a conflict between a group of Afghans and the police. The animosity amongst neighboring ethnicities was also said to be a factor. You can't put these men who's countries hate each other in the same camps. It just doesn't work," said Moria resident Mike Abdule. The destruction displaced thousands of migrants who can now be found sleeping on the side of the road, the beach, or in what's left of their charred campsite.

Migrants and police look on as one of the largest camps in Lesvos burns to the ground. The violence began early this morning with small incidents of rock throwing and trash burning, but quickly worsened as the day went on. According to several South African refugees, the massive blaze was started due to a conflict between a group of Afghans and the police. The animosity amongst neighboring ethnicities was also said to be a factor. You can't put these men who's countries hate each other in the same camps. It just doesn't work," said Moria resident Mike Abdule. The destruction displaced thousands of migrants who can now be found sleeping on the side of the road, the beach, or in what's left of their charred campsite.

A portrait amoung the chaos

A Nigerian migrant shows me a video of Afghans allegedly throwing rocks at police. "This is how it started," he explained. 

A young refugee looks on as one of the largest camps in Lesvos burns to the ground. The violence began early this morning with small incidents of rock throwing and trash burning, but quickly worsened as the day went on. According to several South African refugees, the massive blaze was started due to a conflict between a group of Afghans and the police. The animosity amongst neighboring ethnicities was also said to be a factor. You can't put these men who's countries hate each other in the same camps. It just doesn't work," said Moria resident Mike Abdule. The destruction displaced thousands of migrants who can now be found sleeping on the side of the road, the beach, or in what's left of their charred campsite.

Smoldering trash spills out of a dumpster during a riot at the Moria Refugee Camp

A fire truck pulls into the camp as the blaze continues to rip through rows of tents. Due to fighting amongst police and migrants, the fire trucks could not make it into the camp until the flames had spread out of control. "They just sat out there. They just let it burn," one Nigerian migrant explained. 

Greek Police pull Moria residents off of a volunteers car. The residents punched and kicked the hood, windows, and doors. After the car attempted to drive away, residents blocked the path, and attempted to pull one of the volunteers out of the passenger window. This animosity stems from the belief that volunteers have created a rivalry between villagers and migrants. "They pit them against us," one villager said. "They come in and steal our food, our chickens, our dogs. What do you expect?!" The villagers did not always feel this way however. Until a recent string of vandalizations, the migrant-villager relationship was strong. This new found resentment was established over the last three months as the camps continue to be overcrowded. 

Migrants look on as one of the largest camps in Lesvos burns to the ground. The violence began early this morning with small incidents of rock throwing and trash burning, but quickly worsened as the day went on. According to several South African refugees, the massive blaze was started due to a conflict between a group of Afghans and the police. The animosity amongst neighboring ethnicities was also said to be a factor. You can't put these men who's countries hate each other in the same camps. It just doesn't work," said Moria resident Mike Abdule. The destruction displaced thousands of migrants who can now be found sleeping on the side of the road, the beach, or in what's left of their charred campsite.