When voices can't be heard, photography can cross all cultural and linguistic barriers, to tell a story and reflect the anguish buried inside the hearts and minds of Syrian war refugees, some of whom are traumatized beyond finding word to communicate.
A project called Photo Voice was implemented in a few of our Non-Formal Education centers to give children a chance, beyond words, to be understood.
Photo Voice is a kind of participatory action research that utilizes both images and group dialogue as a way to understand the experience of marginalized or disadvantaged groups and to elict their hopes for the future. Children are asked to take photographs of what is relevant to them and tell stories as they relate through the photographs.
We may think it’s just a photo of a plate of their dinner that night, or a photo of a living room window, or a photo of a sibling or a parent, but for those children, it’s the little things that represent their new world and what they want to remember of their previous lives. As one of the girls participating in Photo Voice expressed it, “It helps us remember the past days and the people we left behind. We only have memories now and pictures help us to keep them fresh in our minds”
Photo Voice is a chance for these children to tell their story and help us understand the world through their eyes. This project is implemented by Questscope, UNICEF and Save the Children- Jordan with support from the European Union.
Oraib Sakkijha
Communications & Media
Related blog posts
