A Poem by Parwana Amiri
Parwana Amiri is an author, poet and activist from Afghanistan who is living in Greece since September 2019. Her poetry may seem softly written, but it contains hidden stories and bitter truths. With her work, she challenges the power of art and poetry to convey these bitter truths of the times. This poem describes the feeling of refugees when they are displaced, on the streets or under tents, in war, when they get exposed to passengers and visitors who come to see their condition. It respects those who visit to support, but blames those who only want to be spectators of the suffering of refugees. It focuses especially on the eyes, representing through who only stand and stare and do not anything to support. The poem is inspired by displaced refugees in Victoria square, who are living in open spaces without shelter and must bear the gaze of all those who pass.
Illustration by Micol Suber
Photo credits for background image: Luca Ciloni
“It is not a drama film – We are not actors – Don’t be spectators – Your eyes bother us!”. The illustration plays with these words – it depicts the audience in a stylized way against an image that illustrates the reality – it embodies the ‘common attitude’ to explain the behaviour shared by the majority of people regarding the refugee crisis – since they are not the ones living it and it’s not affecting their daily lives – they limit themselves by being ‘spectators’.
Your Eyes Bother Us
It is not a drama film
We are not actors
Don’t be spectators
Your eyes bother us!
Trees are our shelter
The earth is our floor
This is a real scene
You eyes bother us!
Violence and humiliation
Scorn and repression
Don’t see us as criminals
Your eyes bother us!
You support is admirable
But, don’t take our pictures
The lenses, your eyes
Your eyes bother us!
In the roads, passengers
In the tents, tourists
In war, among soldiers
Your eyes bother us!
Not the eyes, only hearts
Not the eyes, only thoughts
Not the eyes, only glances
Those eyes bother us!
(Full of respect for all solidarity people who were always there to help us, this poem is only for those
who couldn’t change their perspective about us)
To survive, to breathe
To achieve our goals
Not to stay in darkness
We struggled in Greece