Reclaiming Identity through Storytelling: Roots and Branches – 2025 Community Magazine
After a long and dangerous journey, arriving on Samos and entering the Greek and European asylum system is often seen as the beginning of hope. Hope for a better life, a better future.
Instead, it is for many a degrading experience as they become a part of a system built on reducing people to a number, a case file, a statistic. Seeking to strip people of all identity, this dehumanising system offers little opportunity for storytelling and creative expression.
We are committed to flipping the script. Every single person arriving in Europe brings with them unique perspectives, stories, and an immense amount of resilience and strength. By amplifying voices of our community, we seek to create safe spaces of community and solidarity to reclaim one’s identity.
This past spring, throughout the months of April and May 2025, we ran Community Journalism workshops in our two community spaces, Alpha Centre and Alpha Land. Here, members of our community reflected over themes such as home and belonging, culture and identity, hope and resilience, dreams and future, as well as letter writing to the Greek government and European Union. Choosing one or more themes, participants wrote, drew, and crafted powerful pieces of expression, bringing their unique stories to light. During these creative workshops, participants not only created compelling pieces of art and writing, they reclaimed their voice. A time to reflect on thoughts, experiences, and identity, the workshops offered a path to strengthen identity through creative expression.
After collecting the finished pieces, we brought them together in a powerful community magazine — Roots and Branches. Featuring artwork, poetry, letters, essays, and crafts, it offers a glimpse into the lives and identities of the people within our spaces. Celebrating the community we have built together, the magazine reveals compelling stories and bold voices. Uncovering often unheard stories, the contents of the Zine highlights the tenacity and creativity of each person behind the pages. A symbol of our community's empowerment, diversity, and strength, this magazine is not just a collection of creative pieces — it is a testament to resilience and expression, to the roots we carry and the branches we grow.
On June 20th, World Refugee Day, we marked the publication of Roots and Branches with a powerful exhibit showcasing stories and artworks from the Zine. Coming together to celebrate the launch, this day illustrated the power of solidarity, community, and sharing stories. Tears, smiles, and everything in between was shared, as the exhibit evoked the entire spectrum of emotions. No one left the exhibit without feeling the weight of the words shared and the art displayed. The day served as a powerful reminder of the perspectives and experiences that exist in and around our community, and the impact of storytelling in facilitating community building.
Roots and Branches can be purchased on the Displaced Dishes website , with all proceeds going to Samos Volunteers.
Written by Helene Gottlieb, Communications Officer.