Uncivilized. Ociviliserade.

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”De är civiliserade och ser ut som vi”.

Så har medierapporteringen från Ukraina sett ut och det är ord som bokstavligen använts av journalister på välrenommerade mediebolag.

Vi är den ukrainska mamman, vi är det ukrainska barnet, vi är den ukrainska soldaten som kämpar för sitt land. Vi öppnar våra gränser och visar solidaritet. Vi tar av vår biståndsbudget, vi bistår med pengar och vapen. För de är civiliserade och vi är civiliserade.

I samarbete med vår partner Palestinian Institute for Public Diplomacy (PIPD) presenterar vi ”Uncivilized” – en kampanj som startade som en motreaktion på den rasistiska mediebevakning som skedde när
Ryssland invaderade Ukraina.

Uncivilized is not a t-shirt.

An idea sparked by the racist media coverage and global double standards on Ukraine, it was political satirical commentary on structures of racism and supremacy that were on full display.

It is now evolving beyond that. For me, it encapsulates a mentality of defiance and resistance to those structures that exude hate and exclusion. 

uncivilized is driven by a purpose of challenging, disrupting, dismantling and rebuilding that world. It seeks to not play by its rules but to redefine them entirely. It is not about asking for a seat at the table, but building our own.

This spirit stems from my experience as a Palestinian but what it represents to me could be fundamentally different to those with their own struggles against injustice.

Yet each experience and act of defiance is a thread that weaves a global tapestry of resistance against this world that has told us we are unworthy, that we are lesser than and we don’t belong.

uncivilized for me is to fight by telling our own stories, representing our cultures, identities and struggles to shake and reshape this world as we want it. 

Through shifting the narrative, uncivilized seeks justice.

The “uncivilized” t-shirt is a part of this, with an attempt to raise awareness and funds to enable people who identify with this purpose to tell their own stories. As such profits will be donated to people, projects and organizations working with refugees in media spaces. 

Salem Barahmeh

Executive Director The Palestine Institute for Public Diplomacy / Rābet

Här kan du beställa t-shirten ”Uncivilized”
Läs mer om vår partner Palestinian Institute for Public Diplomacy (PIPD) här