In our Shoes
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In Our Shoes invited young people to look at refugee experiences through a series of written and spoken word workshops, and culminated in a collective spoken word performance where the young people performed alongside professional artists. The project ran in 2003 and 2004, working with 9 secondary schools in Tower Hamlets, and involving over 5,000 young people. Rap performance artist, Crisis, Dan Jones of Amnesty International and the young people used rap, poetry, drama, creative writing, film and literature to look at the idea of walking in the shoes of a refugee.
The key to the success of In Our Shoes is the level of participation of the young people, who are not passive, but are creating and performing their own work. One participant commented: ‘Now I’m able to perform in front of anything…’ The project is about young people’s creativity, looking at ways of taking their talent further, and ways of dealing with conflict. It brings together talented artists and workshop leaders, a popular performance art form and young people’s creativity and energy to promote positive ways of living together as communities.
One Tower Hamlets teacher said: ‘It has been one of the most worthwhile projects I have been involved with as a teacher. There was so much talent in that room; it makes me really hopeful for the future … the focus on the experience of refugees was really good at a time when there is so much negative stuff written about refugees in the press. I know that the views of many of our students changed as a result of the project.’
In Our Shoes was highlighted as a model of good practice by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority sponsored by DfES (see: http://www.qca.org.uk/10010.html)
Read I’m strong by Sadia Uddin
Read My friend is a refugee by Daniel Bowes
Read A beam of light by Rocklyn Murray
