Christos Alefantis, a Greek-Australian born and raised in Melbourne, has spent the best part of the last eleven years spotlighting the experiences of Greece’s homeless through the first Greek street magazine “Σχεδία” (Shedia), and he was able to showcase their work to Syriza leader Stefanos Kasselakis.
Mr Alefantis, who has an extensive career in local media and has lived in Greece since 2005, began a mission to make the homeless visible in 2013 through his street magazine and show the rest of society that they, like all of us, are people with dignity.
He conceived of the idea while in Australia, coming into contact with street magazines and meeting homeless groups, and decided to explore this in Greece himself.
His activities also stretch beyond the magazine, acting as a coach of the homeless national football team.
Mr Alefantis, along with the seller of “Σχεδία”, Mr Michalis, took Mr Kasselakis on a walk of the “invisible routes” in the centre of Athens on Christmas Eve before sharing a meal with his homeless and former homeless fellow citizens at the home of the magazine.
The Syriza leader posted on this experience on his social media, where he said.
All photo: Supplied
“Days of celebration in Athens. I wanted to take the invisible routes in the city. The routes of the homeless. With Mr Michalis, who experienced what it’s like to be homeless in the capital. And the editor of the street magazine ‘Σχεδία’, Christos Alefantis.
We started from the metro station in Metaxourgeio, passed by the Multipurpose Homeless Centre (the ‘Ionis’ hostel), Deligiorgis, Sofokleous, Piraeus, Agios Anargyros…We ended up at the house of Shedia (Kolokotroni and Nikiou street), where they honoured me by having me at the festive table with my homeless and formerly homeless fellow citizens.
People who have lost the earth under their feet and are trying to pick up their lives again. When we become government, the national goal will be to eradicate homelessness completely. By design. Attachment. Organisation. And we will succeed.”
Mr Kasselakis thanked the two for giving him the opportunity to see the experiences of the homeless up close, emphasising the importance of the social impact their magazine has acquired within its 11 years of publication.
Mr Michalis recounted how he lost his home in 2012 when he woke up one morning to go to work and his truck had been stolen, with his landlord seeking five months of rent and seeking to evict him.
“I thought my life was over. A nice lesson for children is that whatever happens in your life, it is never over,” Mr Michalis said.
While on the streets, he lost not just food and shelter but art, culture and sports, he said, and “Shedia came to fix all that”.
Mr Alefantis noted that “we must consult with these people based on their wishes and their own terms and not based on what we believe is right for them”.
Mr Kasselakis, while sat at the festive table and responding to wishes expressed to him by his homeless and formerly homeless fellow citizens, emphasised that “I love the people of my country and I love the heroes that you are, who work to be able to help society”.
“The success I want is for our society. I am not obsessed with the office; I am obsessed with changing things. We will succeed,” he said.
