The name is absent

33

collective of newcomers and some which are not. As unofficial permanent residents of
Athens, these undocumented migrants will slide into an emerging category of “permanent
illegal local” - an individual whose perspective on place and particular modes of
interaction with it signal to locals the manifestation of a different kind of citizen.

After many conversations it became plain to me that Jigo will most likely remain
in Athens once he gains a degree of security. His trip from Africa was so traumatic that
risking a similar path again seemed, at least when I met him, unthinkable. Moreover,
Jigo was starting to accept that Greece is part of Europe, or rather, that the Europe he
imagined - a tolerant place rife with opportunities owed, or at least available to, hard-
working enterprising individuals with his past - doesn’t exist. This occurred over time as
his contacts grew in Athens and he began to hear stories of Africans that did manage to
travel to other places like Italy and France only to find life as difficult as it was in Greece.
The realization sent Jigo into several months of depression during which time he missed
his family terribly and considered surrendering to the police - a desperate attempt to go
home that would, inevitably, have led to his incarceration and eventual release back onto
the streets of Athens worse for the experience. Instead, he made use of the numerous
phone centers in Athens operated mostly by immigrants to make inexpensive long-
distance phone calls to his brother and mother who encouraged him to stay and make
what he could of the situation. Eventually, and with the help of his local friends, Jigo
overcame his depression. It was around this time when Jigo began to consider staying in
Athens, and also the time when he began to break from the collective.

<<   39   40   41   42   43   44   45   >>

More intriguing information