Pink Flag, Greek Flag

Dear reader,

This is our weekly round-up from Greece.

Christmas is here. But there is little Christmas spirit around.

This week, the government:

• Removed from the Greek consulate in New York an artwork depicting a pink flag meant to be a protest against femicide f. At first, this happened after an ultra-religious party leader complained in Parliament. Later, the Greek Foreign Minister said the decision was made before the complaint was filed.

• Staged a legal ‘coup’ against the new mayor of Athens by transferring the management of the company that undertakes most major gentrification works in the city to the government. 

• Went ahead with plans to privatize the gates’ management of the Acropolis -that is, tickets and infrastructure- while at the same time announcing significant increases in the price of the Acropolis tickets and launching… private tours for 5,000. Everything is for sale.   

ND government censors art, annoyed by a pink flag, not by femicides 

A pink Greek flag in an art exhibition at the Consulate General of Greece in New York, in collaboration with the Hellenic-American Chamber, was withdrawn (Öffnet in neuem Fenster) by the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs in an incident widely perceived as censorship.

The art piece entitled “Neighborhood Guilt” was made by New York-based artist Georgia Lale and depicts the Greek flag in pink stripes descending from bed sheets belonging to victims of femicide and domestic violence in Greece. It aimed to raise awareness of the issue. As explained,

“The work of art is created from sheets donated by women living in Greece. These women seemingly have little in common, but they all lie on these sheets, desperate and scared.”