Pussy Riot Join Fight Against Human Rights Abuses As Part of Extraordinary Art Project
Last weekend Sasha Adler, member of the Russian protest group Pussy Riot took part in a groundbreaking art project.
Human Rights Tattoo is an international art project started in 2012 by the Dutch artist Sander van Bussel that aims to create awareness and underline the importance of Human Rights. Its goal is to tattoo the complete Declaration of Human Rights on individuals, letter by letter.
The complete text of the declaration contains 6773 letters. Each person gets one character. This means that in the end, there is a group of 6773 people from all around the world walking together with the complete text of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Sasha Adler is the 3262nd participant out of 6773 world wide.
After Nyne met with Sander to discuss the background to this project and the importance of keeping up the good fight against human rights abuses worldwide
6773 letters in the Declaration of Human Rights. 6773 tattoos. Thats an ambitious project. What gave you the idea?
I had the idea in February 2012. A week after my colleague Steven Nyash was murdered in the slums of Korogocho. I met Steven in 2010 and we worked together for Festival Mundial in my hometown Tilburg.
Advocating human rights cost him his life. For me Steven was an example of somebody who really used his talent to make a change. He stood up for the rights of the people of his community.
How were you able to take what happened to Steven and make something positive out of it?
Of course Steven's death shocked me and the same time it made me reflect on my own situation, what do I do with my talents? And I felt I could do better.
Now being an artist doesn’t give me a whole lot of tools to change the world on my own, but my idea of tattooing the human rights, uniting people in what they stand for, seemed like a good next step.
A tattoo is close to yourself and what you believe in, it becomes a part of you. Human Rights Tattoos for me are a good way to make this declaration come alive, not some text that is used in courtrooms, committees and politics, but something that is part of you, rights you inherently have just because you are human. What better way to connect yourself to the moral principles of humanity then with a small piece of your human skin?
How are you selecting participants in the project?
We don’t select :-). However we try to make this ‘living version’ of the declaration as international and universal as it can be. That means that we do make choices where and in which countries the tattoo-events take place. People from 62 different countries joined us so far since 2012.
At our events usually lots of people show up, and then its first come first serve. There is a maximum of tattoos that can be done in one day, and its something between between 50 and 80 tattoos.
How did Pussy Riot get involved?
Amnesty International made the connection. They invited us both for Zwarte Cross Festival. We asked Sasha and Nadya of Pussy Riot if they want to join Human Rights Tattoo and Sasha answered; ‘I can’t see why not’. Half an hour later she had a tattooed ’S' on her shoulder, the 3262th letter in the declaration.
What is the end goal of the project?
The first goal is to have a living, human version of the Declaration of Human Rights, a community of people who share ideals, who are connected as a chain, who feel supported in their ideals. One of the end goals of course is that people will keep on talking about their tattoo, about human rights, live up to these rights, for the rest of their lives. If all 6773 people talk about their tattoo once a week, that will be almost 1000 conversations a day, for as long as they live. Of course I hope this project will start discussion, raise questions, fuel a debat, and keep people awake, that is the power of art.
Do you feel attitudes towards human rights have shifted over the past ten years?
Human rights are violated every day and everywhere, this is not something new, but what concerns me most is that I’m not sure we still agree on the principle that we are all born free and equal in dignity and rights. If the first sentence of this declaration is still violated after 68 years, then that is not a violation, that is ignoring it’s existence. To this day, it still is the one text that aims to be universal for mankind. No religion, ideology or political system ever got that far as to really unite and define what it means to be human. The horror of the second world war was needed to agree on such moral principles as human rights, but sometimes it seems that has faded and we are drifting towards new horror.
Do you feel that action is more important than words in fighting human rights abuses?
The words in this declaration are powerful, but words alone don’t change the world. First step is to act to it yourself, live up to it, start in your own life, keep each other motivated to do so. In terms of fighting abuses; speak up, don't be silent, don’t be indifferent.
What needs to change to protect human rights for the next generation?
If only I had that answer…
I do sense a lot of fear among people. In this very complex world they retreat in their own confined, smaller world. They use their energy for this own world, to protect it from change. Off course they feel powerless to change the big issues, who doesn’t, but by fencing your world the fear of what is outside will grow easily. Feeling connected as human beings is a start, equal in dignity and rights, and being equal doesn’t mean we are the same, it means being different and equal. Human Rights will always need to be protected, and accepting they are universal will broaden your horizon. But it will be a continuous struggle, so we have to encourage and motivate ourself and each other as much as we can.
Sander van Bussel from art collective Tilburg Cowboys is creative founder of Human Rights Tattoo. The murder of fellow artist and Steven ‘Nyash’ Nygah in Nairobi in 2012 motivated him to pursue his idea. Human Rights Tattoo has since then grown into a community of human rights ambassadors, volunteers and organisations who all work together to accomplish Human Rights Tattoo. For more information check the website www.humanrightstattoo.org
Images © Photography Sander van Bussel/ Human Rights Tattoo
