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| The idealists of Lesbos: volunteers at the heart of the refugee crisis | The idealists of Lesbos: volunteers at the heart of the refugee crisis |
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| An air of expectancy hangs over Lesbos before Pope Francis’s visit. Security is being tightened; beaches are being cleaned. In the island’s town hall, the mayor, Spyros Galinos, has invested in a guest book, which he hopes the pontiff will be the first to sign. | An air of expectancy hangs over Lesbos before Pope Francis’s visit. Security is being tightened; beaches are being cleaned. In the island’s town hall, the mayor, Spyros Galinos, has invested in a guest book, which he hopes the pontiff will be the first to sign. |
| In Moria, the hillside village that is now home to Lesbos’s notorious barbed-wire-topped detention centre, refugees are being prepped for Francis’s arrival. “It will be hugely symbolic,” says Galinos. “For a few hours, the world’s greatest humanitarian will be highlighting Europe’s biggest humanitarian crisis.” | In Moria, the hillside village that is now home to Lesbos’s notorious barbed-wire-topped detention centre, refugees are being prepped for Francis’s arrival. “It will be hugely symbolic,” says Galinos. “For a few hours, the world’s greatest humanitarian will be highlighting Europe’s biggest humanitarian crisis.” |
| Related: Life on Lesbos: residents tell us what it's really like | |
| Few places conjure crisis as much as Lesbos. Since its emergence on the frontline of the greatest movement of people since the second world war, the Greek island has come to represent a spirit that goes well beyond its jagged coastline, an almost mystical rite of passage for volunteers wading in to help. | Few places conjure crisis as much as Lesbos. Since its emergence on the frontline of the greatest movement of people since the second world war, the Greek island has come to represent a spirit that goes well beyond its jagged coastline, an almost mystical rite of passage for volunteers wading in to help. |
| Pope Francis, the most prominent figure to fly in so far, takes a well-trodden path. More than 50,000 volunteers are thought to have passed through since men, women and children – the vast majority fleeing war in Syria – began to land on its shores in flimsy boats last summer. | Pope Francis, the most prominent figure to fly in so far, takes a well-trodden path. More than 50,000 volunteers are thought to have passed through since men, women and children – the vast majority fleeing war in Syria – began to land on its shores in flimsy boats last summer. |
| At no other time in modern history have NGOs or individuals stepped in to make up for the limited resources of a near bankrupt country that has struggled to cope with the influx. | At no other time in modern history have NGOs or individuals stepped in to make up for the limited resources of a near bankrupt country that has struggled to cope with the influx. |
| For human rights groups the papal visit offers a golden opportunity to expose the plight of of thousands detained in Greece since Europe’s controversial deal with Turkey to stem the flows. | For human rights groups the papal visit offers a golden opportunity to expose the plight of of thousands detained in Greece since Europe’s controversial deal with Turkey to stem the flows. |
| “For everyone here the experience is totally life-changing,” says Adil Izemrane, a Dutch volunteer who previously ran a real estate company in Amsterdam. “Our hope is that Francis will be just as touched as we have been, that the visit will open his heart and make him more proactive.” | “For everyone here the experience is totally life-changing,” says Adil Izemrane, a Dutch volunteer who previously ran a real estate company in Amsterdam. “Our hope is that Francis will be just as touched as we have been, that the visit will open his heart and make him more proactive.” |
| Like many, Izemrane felt compelled to move to Lesbos when he saw the shocking image of the Syrian toddler Alan Kurdi lying limp and lifeless on a Turkish beach after his doomed family attempted to reach the island of Kos last September. | Like many, Izemrane felt compelled to move to Lesbos when he saw the shocking image of the Syrian toddler Alan Kurdi lying limp and lifeless on a Turkish beach after his doomed family attempted to reach the island of Kos last September. |
| Before that, the 38-year-old had never heard of Lesbos. His favourite island was Ibiza, where every year he “celebrated life” with friends. But by October he was in Greece with what would soon be Europe’s biggest food truck in tow. “I see how much difference I can make for a lot of people and that’s a thousand times more rewarding than selling condominiums,” says the son of Moroccan immigrants who has helped set up the humanitarian group Movement on the Ground. “You may not be able to stop the [Syrian] war but what this island does is make you realise you can change lives.” | Before that, the 38-year-old had never heard of Lesbos. His favourite island was Ibiza, where every year he “celebrated life” with friends. But by October he was in Greece with what would soon be Europe’s biggest food truck in tow. “I see how much difference I can make for a lot of people and that’s a thousand times more rewarding than selling condominiums,” says the son of Moroccan immigrants who has helped set up the humanitarian group Movement on the Ground. “You may not be able to stop the [Syrian] war but what this island does is make you realise you can change lives.” |
| If compassion is the volunteers’ driving force, idealism is their staying power. So too, is shock: the shock of experiencing the tragedy up close and, say nearly all, realising the lack of empathy displayed by governments back home. | If compassion is the volunteers’ driving force, idealism is their staying power. So too, is shock: the shock of experiencing the tragedy up close and, say nearly all, realising the lack of empathy displayed by governments back home. |
| When Steffi De Pous, who is also Dutch, arrived on Lesbos she was, by her own admission, a yoga-teaching former model “trying to do my bit” for peace, love and harmony. Being on a beach, alone, helping hundreds of drenched, exhausted refugees was not what she envisioned. | When Steffi De Pous, who is also Dutch, arrived on Lesbos she was, by her own admission, a yoga-teaching former model “trying to do my bit” for peace, love and harmony. Being on a beach, alone, helping hundreds of drenched, exhausted refugees was not what she envisioned. |
| But last summer, as the number of arrivals surged, that is exactly what happened. “In the beginning when there was almost no one here, you’d find yourself alone on some shore completely overwhelmed,” she recalled. | But last summer, as the number of arrivals surged, that is exactly what happened. “In the beginning when there was almost no one here, you’d find yourself alone on some shore completely overwhelmed,” she recalled. |
| “One day I helped nine boats and about 450 people. It changes you for life and it changes you in a beautiful way,” said the 33-year-old, whose group Because We Carry initially began distributing baby slings. | “One day I helped nine boats and about 450 people. It changes you for life and it changes you in a beautiful way,” said the 33-year-old, whose group Because We Carry initially began distributing baby slings. |
| “I feel blessed. I never want to complain but I also have a burning fire inside because it doesn’t feel fair. These people have risked everything to get here. And all Europe wants to do is deport them.” | “I feel blessed. I never want to complain but I also have a burning fire inside because it doesn’t feel fair. These people have risked everything to get here. And all Europe wants to do is deport them.” |
| Anger is a sentiment widely shared. At 25, Benjamin Julian, an activist from Iceland, is typical of the younger generation in Greece with the solidarity movement. Like others, he has spent months travelling to and from island flashpoints, often dossing in anarchist-run squats. | Anger is a sentiment widely shared. At 25, Benjamin Julian, an activist from Iceland, is typical of the younger generation in Greece with the solidarity movement. Like others, he has spent months travelling to and from island flashpoints, often dossing in anarchist-run squats. |
| The refugee crisis, he argues, is not only a just cause but has radicalised western leftists in the same way that Vietnam did. “Sure, Greece is trendy, a once-in-a decade networking festival for European anti-racist activists,” he says. “But you know you are witnessing history too. Talking to volunteers who have seen the incompetence of the state and brutality of the state, it is very clear that even blue-eyed optimists leave as hardened political activists.” | The refugee crisis, he argues, is not only a just cause but has radicalised western leftists in the same way that Vietnam did. “Sure, Greece is trendy, a once-in-a decade networking festival for European anti-racist activists,” he says. “But you know you are witnessing history too. Talking to volunteers who have seen the incompetence of the state and brutality of the state, it is very clear that even blue-eyed optimists leave as hardened political activists.” |
| There are few who do not believe that – following its decision to deport non-asylum seekers back to Turkey – Europe is also headed down a dark path. For the Australian Alison Terry-Evans, Lesbos has borne witness to “post-apocalyptic” scenes: howls in the night from those lucky enough to reach its shores, a terrifying silence from the hundreds who have ended up drowning along the way. | There are few who do not believe that – following its decision to deport non-asylum seekers back to Turkey – Europe is also headed down a dark path. For the Australian Alison Terry-Evans, Lesbos has borne witness to “post-apocalyptic” scenes: howls in the night from those lucky enough to reach its shores, a terrifying silence from the hundreds who have ended up drowning along the way. |
| “You would hear the screaming before you would see those doing it,” she recollects. “The children would cry, the women would shout, the men would be silent because they wanted to do both. It’s very difficult after that to see the sea in the same way.” | “You would hear the screaming before you would see those doing it,” she recollects. “The children would cry, the women would shout, the men would be silent because they wanted to do both. It’s very difficult after that to see the sea in the same way.” |
| The street photographer founded Dirty Girls, an organisation that launders the wet clothes of arriving refugees, at the height of the crisis. Set in a remote olive grove up a long winding road in the north of the island, the laundry also washes the felt blankets handed out by the United Nations refugee agency – a move that has saved the UNHCR more than €1m. | The street photographer founded Dirty Girls, an organisation that launders the wet clothes of arriving refugees, at the height of the crisis. Set in a remote olive grove up a long winding road in the north of the island, the laundry also washes the felt blankets handed out by the United Nations refugee agency – a move that has saved the UNHCR more than €1m. |
| Susan Sarandon, the Hollywood star, has dropped by. Donations from actors and other people in the arts in Britain have poured in. “We were in this privileged position of being in a place where we could be kind,” says Terry-Evans, who wants to establish laundries elsewhere to help the 53,000 migrants and refugees stranded in Greece since Macedonia and other Balkan states sealed their borders. “After the EU’s awful agreement they have locked everyone up and even taken that away. Honestly, I don’t think there is one refugee who is going to benefit from the pope’s visit.” | Susan Sarandon, the Hollywood star, has dropped by. Donations from actors and other people in the arts in Britain have poured in. “We were in this privileged position of being in a place where we could be kind,” says Terry-Evans, who wants to establish laundries elsewhere to help the 53,000 migrants and refugees stranded in Greece since Macedonia and other Balkan states sealed their borders. “After the EU’s awful agreement they have locked everyone up and even taken that away. Honestly, I don’t think there is one refugee who is going to benefit from the pope’s visit.” |
| The “strange disconnect” between volunteers and the governments that represent them is not lost on Amed Khan, a long-time associate of the former US president Bill Clinton, who has also spent time on Lesbos. The investor, who bought Andy Warhol’s Mao in 2011 but has since rejected consumerism for the world of philanthropy, has also been motivated by rage. “I’m just furious about the callous indifference of the rich and gross incompetence of the powerful,” says the 44-year-old, who has funded a transit centre and search and rescue operations on the island. | The “strange disconnect” between volunteers and the governments that represent them is not lost on Amed Khan, a long-time associate of the former US president Bill Clinton, who has also spent time on Lesbos. The investor, who bought Andy Warhol’s Mao in 2011 but has since rejected consumerism for the world of philanthropy, has also been motivated by rage. “I’m just furious about the callous indifference of the rich and gross incompetence of the powerful,” says the 44-year-old, who has funded a transit centre and search and rescue operations on the island. |
| “The whole thing is a disgrace, a self-induced faux crisis. Citizens’ movements are good but where are the rich? In Rwanda we saw the same thing, people of limited means taking time out of their schedule to help. Here I hear of yachts being chartered for a million dollars a week; just the gas they use would be enough to educate refugee children for a year.” | “The whole thing is a disgrace, a self-induced faux crisis. Citizens’ movements are good but where are the rich? In Rwanda we saw the same thing, people of limited means taking time out of their schedule to help. Here I hear of yachts being chartered for a million dollars a week; just the gas they use would be enough to educate refugee children for a year.” |
| Social media is the glue that has connected young idealists. More than ever, they say, Facebook has highlighted the arbitrary nature of borders. “I have sat on beaches with young Pakistanis and thought: that could be me,” says Kavita Kapur, an American human rights lawyer also on Lesbos. “The only difference is my grandparents left and I have a passport that allows me to move on.” | Social media is the glue that has connected young idealists. More than ever, they say, Facebook has highlighted the arbitrary nature of borders. “I have sat on beaches with young Pakistanis and thought: that could be me,” says Kavita Kapur, an American human rights lawyer also on Lesbos. “The only difference is my grandparents left and I have a passport that allows me to move on.” |
| But it is carefree Greece that has provided the backdrop for the idealists. “It is easy, safe, accessible,” adds Kapur, admitting that it was her belief in the capacity of human beings that had brought her to the island. “In a crisis of this magnitude, it is not Lesbos, it is Greece in general that has become a rite of passage for so many of us.” | But it is carefree Greece that has provided the backdrop for the idealists. “It is easy, safe, accessible,” adds Kapur, admitting that it was her belief in the capacity of human beings that had brought her to the island. “In a crisis of this magnitude, it is not Lesbos, it is Greece in general that has become a rite of passage for so many of us.” |