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"You must be the change you wish to see in the world" Ghandi
| A unified action in a divided city |
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In late 2009, the activists of My Initiative (MI) carried out the project “My Street Activism“. They were joined by the activists of the Gornji Vakuf/Uskopje Youth Center. The sponsor of the action was Schuler Helfen Leben. From 18 to 20 December the activists spoke to young people from the divided city about their problems and plans. They were  informed on the work of MI, and there was also talk about facing the past. The films “Imported Crows“ and “Whose Song is This“ were shown, and then discussions ensued on the past of the region, but also on the problems of this Bosnian community, divided into the “Croatian“ and the “Bosnian“ parts. A joined exchange of holiday season greeting cards was arranged in both parts of the city. The cards were handed out on 8 January 2010. This was the second stage of the MI’s and Youth Center’s action called “My Street Activism“. The greeting cards, which all started with “In the next year I wish You...“, had different content: “...to love all human similarities and differences“; “...that your street is no longer a border“; “...that your friends are not chosen for their names“; “...best of luck with every letter, and not two schools under one roof“; “...to be in a good mood and for everything to be better in the new year“. The activists of both organizations handed out greeting cards in both parts of the town. There were negative reactions on some locations. The people at the Health center were not interested in the content of the greeting card.
Melisa Karadza
Source: Youth Initiative for Human Rights (http://www.yihr.org) - YIHR Newsletter January 2010
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