PRESS RELEASE
6/12/2021
4th day of the 4th International Festival
"The Reflection of Disability in Art"
18:00-21:00
The fourth day of the 4th International Festival "The Reflection of Disability in Art" started pleasantly. The program began with the song “Kapotetha ‘rthoun” (“One day they will come”), music by MikisTheodorakis and lyrics by Lefteris Papadopoulos, which was performed by the RoDi Music Orchestra.
The musical beginning followed the screening of the films. This thematic section was titled “FAMILY RELATIONSHIPS” and contained the following films “His shoelaces” by ElpidaChelioudaki, ArgiroTzagkaraki, and FrosoEmmanouilidou, “ΤΟΟ BEAUTIFUL” by AïchaGhembaza, “A son like others” by Antonio Sequeira and “AU” by Olga Kalchugina. The films of this thematic section are about the relationships that are developed within a family, the parents’ need to protect their children, and also the children’s need to be more and more independent as they grow older.
After the screening, Ms. AggelikiGena, Clinical Psychologist and Professor of the Pedagogical Department of Secondary Education of the Philosophical School of the University of Athens. Ms. Gena perorated the common messages of the screened documentaries, underlining how thoughts and concerns about disability and the future of the people with disabilities are common to people of all times and places. She also mentioned the importance of the general development of disabled people and the measures that are needed to be taken, at the same time, to ensure their entertainment, amusement, and the avoidance of self-stigma.
Moreover, Ms. KonstantinaKintoni, communication specialist at the Institute of the Health of the Child, talked about her personal view as a mother of a disabled child. Ms. Kintoni emphasized that we should congratulate directly the disabled people for their efforts and accomplishments and not their parents, considering that their parents are there just to support them. She then talked about her personal growth through her experiences as a mother of a disabled child, and also how her daughter, Maria, helped her to restrict her selfishness, to discover her strengths, and to love herself and the others around her.
Subsequently, Maria-NefeliKintoni, student of Nursery Teaching, noted the importance of social inclusion for people with disabilities and that with the proper support disabled people can achieve every single one of their goals. Finally, she underlined that being independent and free within the family and any other structure, are really important for disabled people.
Afterwards, Ms. TriadaMalkotsi, Doctor-Radiologist, Head of the Breast Department of the G.P.H. Papageorgiou, Mother of Eve – child with autism and Moderator of the educational website Eva-edu.gr, urged all the parents of disabled children to support their children without suffocating them. She stated that disabled people need to understand that they are not just living with their families, but they are real members of them and that the same goes as long as society is concerned. Lastly, Ms. Malkotsi mentioned that disabled people and their parents are often pitied, however, she thinks this pity comes from fear of the unknown and the things they cannot understand.
Furthermore, Ms. Gena stressed that we all need to realize that no one is really independent because we all are interdependent from each other. To conclude, the audience made their comments, noted their viewpoints, and asked questions that were then answered by the speakers.
(Read the transcript)
