This episode features a conversation between Dr. Yannis Hamilakis and Dr. Naor Ben-Yehohada about Moria, once the largest refugee camp in Europe until it was completely destroyed by a fire in September 2020. Dr. Hamilakis had been researching, experiencing, and witnessing the materiality of contemporary migration on Lesvos, the Greek island where Moria was located, since 2016. And, in the aftermath of its destruction, he convened a cohort of archaeologists, social anthropologists, activists, teachers, and authors with direct connections to and experiences of Moria to reflect on what the place meant to them and possible directions for the future. These contributions came together in the form of a multimodal portfolio, “What Was Moria and What Comes Next?” comprising research and photo essays, ethnographic fiction, first-person accounts, lyrical prose, illustration, and more. Dr. Hamilakis’s introduction to the collection, was published in the February 2022 issue of American Anthropologist and the entirety of the collection is available open-access on the journal’s website. To round out the multimodal scope of this project, this episode contributes an oral and aural dimension to the reflections to “What Moria and What Comes Next?”
What Was Moria and What Comes Next?
Credits:
Producer: Anar Parikh
Executive Producer - Anar Parikh
Featured Music: "Vertigo feat. Sponty" by Krav Boca