Hate crimes in Greece have increased drastically over the last year. The political group named after “Golden Dawn” has introduced a vast variety of new ideas on how and why the social world should be functioning nowadays in Greece. I will explain myself in just a minute!
“Gays, you are the next ones” is the message on the flyers that were distributed in the streets of Gazi, the most well known gay friendly area in Athens. The flyers were made and distributed by the “Golden Dawn” only three months ago, while irregular migrants have been facing same treatment for over a year back. Regardless the developing world, the developing relationships, knowledge freely allocated on the internet, resourceful communities, we still have not found the way to awake the “sleeping minds.”
My nationality is Greek, thus I have some friends there. Recently I have received a phone call from a friend of mine. She takes a deep breath over the phone and tells me: “I am moving out.” The length of the meaning of this sentence is tremendous to me.
As a social worker I would like to see improvements, I would like to experience acceptance, and envision dreams. One to be thrown out of thy own roots is incredibly unacceptable. The psycho-social and emotional stressing factors are of worse impact to the individual, as well, when imposed turn into a hate crime.
Initially I said hate crime increases in Greece. It does. People are bushed more often these days in the streets of Athens, than they were in the 1980s! Gay men have been threatened to death and have been beaten hatefully because of their sexual identity.
Social work is a science of social change and well-being, but talking about it is not going to bring that change. Active action and international policy practice are crucial at this moment for social systems in Greece.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFEeS2OXpoI
