Summary
The name of the project is Human Migration, which in itself can be said to counteract coexistence as it may seem alienating. Despite a desire to break down hierarchies, one cannot help but conclude that the title actually points to the very same thing that the project has a desire to break down. This project is very much about power, hierarchies and privileges. Throughout this setup, I have been the one who had the power, because the frames were created by me. I have been granted the funds – there is no denying this, and it gives me power as I have a reporting obligation with respect to the way in which I have spent the funds I received. I think that those who participate within the created framework may experience that the frames make a flat structure possible, but structurally, it is not really flat.
Although I had a desire to create freedom, I still felt that it became controlled. After setting the frames for my colleagues, and my colleagues in turn setting the frames for the participants, I wanted the people with migrant experience to also set some frames and take on the role as hosts. The ownership was simply too tight, so I wanted to try to kick off another study where the participants were the hosts. This is why we did a study presentation for a wider audience after each workshop. Getting the participants to facilitate a workshop was a way to pass on ownership and a way in which the method could dissipate. In these larger workshops, experts were present who had just two minutes to reflect on a more scientific level. I think the combination of something performative and the reflection was interesting.
Reflection was totally essential if we wanted to extract knowledge from these workshops. You do not always record what happens in a space when you yourself are present, and therefore, you do not focus on what works and what does not work. Thus, the subsequent reflection was important.
When I think of the documentary theatre, I somehow see an image of a piece of paper where the margins should not be cut off, since the margins make up all the specific and different worlds of life that are out there. What is the documentary theatre if not specific? It can create artificial spaces if too much is left out of the conversation. It is like walking on ice that is a little too thin: You do not know when you will take a wrong step. Therefore, it is important to expand the discussions in our community and consider diverse knowledge as valid and valuable. People evolve by sharing experience and knowledge, as this enables us to expand some perspectives. The immersion into the specific is the one that creates varied understandings.
