Dizzy

  • What Happened
    • Survivor Stories
    • History & Analysis
    • External Resources
    • Our Impact: Stories behind the Statistics
  • Our Work
    • About Us
      • The Charity
      • Staff
      • Regional & Country Boards
      • Academic Advisory Board
      • President and Patrons
      • APPG on Srebrenica
      • Contact Us
    • Memorial Events
      • Resources and Registration for Event Organisers
      • Past Memorial Events
        • National
        • Local
    • Education
    • Lessons from Srebrenica
    • Supporting Community Action
    • Latest News
    • Videos
    • Frequently Asked Questions – FAQ
  • What You Can Do
    • Resources for Event Organisers
    • Educate
    • We Are One Tournament
    • Build Better Communities
    • Share your Stories
    • Visit Srebrenica
      • Our Visits Programme
      • Bearing Witness
    • Donate
      • Support our work Scotland
      • International Srebrenica Memorial Learning Centre
    • Jobs
  • Our Impact
    • Messages of Support
    • Download Annual Report
    • People Taking Action
    • In The Media
    • Inspiration – Music, Poems and Prayers
    • Memorial Day Reflections
Home Primary Case Studies I Remember Srebrenica, London, 15th July

I Remember Srebrenica, London, 15th July

The You Press collective group of artists were deeply inspired by Srebrenica to create work about human rights and war, with many pieces drawn from survivors’ accounts of the genocide in Bosnia. This event featured performances of this work and drew a diverse crowd to learn more about Srebrenica.

On 15th July 2016 we delivered an event at Oxford House, Bethnal Green, called ‘I Remember Srebrenica’ that honoured the victims and survivors of the genocide and war through poetry, music and spoken word. Our collective group of artists were deeply inspired to create work about human rights and war, with many pieces drawn from survivors’ accounts of what has been described as the greatest atrocity in Europe since WWII.

As a group of artists & students, in 2015 we took a physical and mental journey to understand what it really means to hate, forgive and survive by taking part in a learning visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina. The aim was use the lessons from the dreadful events in Srebrenica to create a better world, one in which our differences become our strengths, and the only thing left intolerable is injustice. While we were there we had the honour of meeting the mothers who had survived the systematic massacre in Srebrenica. These incredible women had lost their husbands, sons, brothers and nephews. This inspired us to create powerful events in London (to honour our pledge) to raise awareness.

crowd shot of I remember Srebrenica

Our event exceeded my expectations on what I initially envisioned. It was incredible to see that our events attract a large number of people and have a positive impact on the community. Our target audience were young people and the Bosnian community. We successfully attracted different age groups, genders, religions and ethnicity (that represent the diverse communities in London) to our event.

In terms of fundraising for the event, our first attempt was not successful as we had only managed to raise £80 in 3 weeks. Prior to this we had made 5 different funding applications in a course of 12 months and each application was rejected. In the end we never gave up, and we decided to try a different crowd-funding platform. What happened next was a surprise; in just 3 weeks we had reached our crowd-funding target and we had donators/supporter from around the world.

Aside from the crowd-funding we were very fortunate to get support from Tesco and Nandos, who agreed to provide us with in-kind refreshments for our rehearsals and event. Queen Victoria Seamen’s Rest were also very supportive because they provided a space to conduct our rehearsals for our event.

performer at You Press event

I was very happy with every aspect of the event. But if I had to choose one of the best moments, it would be when Resad & the survivors arrived to our event and received a warm standing ovation. The feedback from the audience after the event was incredible and shows what impact it had on them:

“As an individual with shamefully little knowledge of what happened at Srebrenica I left feeling moved, educated and committed to communicating what I’d experienced to others.”

“Speechless, everything was crafted so professionally and beautifully. Amazing!”

“Sorrow but not resentful. I will make a bigger effort to tackle injustice when I see it.”

I would strongly encourage others to engage with commemorating Srebrenica, there is no experience like it. When it comes to organising an event, my advice would to form a team and to not work alone. I would also recommend that you plan ahead of your event and to never be afraid to ask for help. But most importantly to make sure that you are doing this event for the right reasons, this will help you to keep motivated and focused on your goals.

Reflections of Farah Mohammoud from YouPress

Sep 21, 2016Amil Khan
MAKE A DONATION
Remembering Srebrenica remains committed to honouring the victims and survivors of the genocide.

SUPPORT US
SUPPORT US & PLEDGE
Make a difference, support our charity and all those affected by the tragic Genocide of Srebrenica. Pledge for our cause now.

PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT
SIGN UP FOR OUR NEWSLETTER
Remembering Srebrenica newsletter allows you to keep up to date with latest news, events and how you can support us.

SIGN UP
September 21, 2016 Case Studiesgenocide, Lessons from Srebrenica, poetry, spoken word, Srebrenica
His Eminence Cardinal Vincent NicholsRemembering Srebrenica Fundraising Dinner
  You Might Also Like  
 
Returning to Bosnia
 
Blackburn Central High School – Hate Crime Awareness Week Workshops
 
Case Study: Community Champion Katie Parker
 Search 

Remembering SrebrenicaFollow

Remembering Srebrenica
SrebrenicaUKRemembering Srebrenica@SrebrenicaUK·
6h

The first casualties of the brutal Siege of Sarajevo were to be Suada Dilberović, a young medical student, and Olga Sučić, a young mother of two. The two Bosnian women were bravely protesting the war and were killed by Serbian forces. We Remember. #InternationalWomensDay

2484Twitter
Remembering Srebrenica Retweeted
REFCardiffVGRace Equality First@REFCardiffVG·
10h

.#InternationalWomensDay #Bosnia https://t.co/EYAg2fdNHi

3Twitter
SrebrenicaUKRemembering Srebrenica@SrebrenicaUK·
8h

This #IWD2021 we honour the late Hatidža Mehmedović, a fierce warrior for human rights & genocide remembrance. A woman, who despite losing so much of her family continued to showcase her strength & her refusal to succumb to hatred and instead focus on righteousness. We remember.

2375Twitter
Remembering Srebrenica Retweeted
emma_mawbyemma mawby@emma_mawby·
12h

This #InternationalWomensDay we honour the rape survivors, the mothers, and all those women who #ChooseToChallenge the genocide deniers.

#WeRemember https://t.co/iKGI83Nb73

32Twitter
Remembering Srebrenica Retweeted
AdaSostaricAda Šoštarić@AdaSostaric·
9h

"Despite the pain and the trauma of her horrific experiences, Fadila returned to Srebrenica and set up a business selling flowers: 'I started realising that I must go on.'" https://t.co/RRjEYnCTkV

316Twitter
Load More...
 The charity 
A Project of Ummah Help. Registered charity no. 1142686. Registered company no. 7369796. Click here to find out more.
 Latest news 
Remembering Srebrenica’s 2021 Theme: Rebuilding Lives
February 4, 2021

Every year, Remembering Srebrenica selects a theme that reflects an aspect of the genocide that must be commemorated, but also speaks to communities here in the UK.  The theme for 2021 is ‘Rebuilding Lives’.  In albeit very different ways the Covid pandemic has brought loss and difficulties to millions, shattering individuals and communities, who are […]

Hatidža Mehmedović – A mother’s legacy
November 26, 2020

Hatidža Mehmedović was born in the area surrounding Srebrenica in 1952. Before the genocide, she lived her entire life in Srebrenica, where she had married her childhood friend, Abdullah, and had two sons, Azmir and Almir. Hatidža and Abdullah built their home in Srebrenica and lived a simple life as a family before the war […]

“Untold Killing”: first serialised podcast about the genocide in Bosnia launched
October 22, 2020

London, United Kingdom — This past July marked 25 years since the genocide in Bosnia and Herzegovina, often referred to as the worst atrocity on Europe’s soil since the Holocaust. The story of Srebrenica, a small town in Bosnia, remains a dark stain on Europe’s history and yet the full details remain unknown to many.  […]

 Remembering Srebrenica 

What happened
Survivor Stories
Memorial Day
Vistiting Srebrenica

 Site Links 

Homepage
Get Involved
Resources
News
Messages of support
About us
Get in contact
Sitemap

GET IN CONTACT

If you want to get involved with Remembering Srebrenica, or find out how you can help then please get in contact

SEND US AN EMAIL


2019 © Remembering Srebrenica. Privacy Policy
Website developed by Spyre Media