Maritime rescue charity SOS Méditerranée is hosting an arts festival in Paris to boost support for migrants and asylum seekers navigating the treacherous Mediterranean Sea – the most deadly crossing for those fleeing war, poverty and persecution.
The organisation's first Escales Solidaires festival, running until 7 January in Paris and Seine-Saint-Denis, aims to show the human faces behind migration statistics through photography, film and performance.
The NGO, which operates rescue ships in the central Mediterranean, has saved more than 40,000 lives since its founding in 2015. It needs €24,000 per day to maintain its rescue operations.
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Individual stories
An outdoor exhibition along the Seine features work by some 30 photographers documenting a decade of missions by the organisation’s rescue vessels, Aquarius and Ocean Viking.
"I asked crew members and survivors to share a treasured object and narrate its significance", said photographer Jérémie Lusseau.
Belgian photographer Johanna de Tessières reflected on her poignant portrait of an eight-year-old boy named Ali, saying: "It was shocking to witness that at such a young age, he had already endured imprisonment in Libya and was now attempting the journey alone."
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Beyond the statistics
At the heart of the festival are the human stories behind the statistics.
“We want to continually emphasise that behind the statistics and the label ‘migrants’ are individual children, women and men,” said Sabine Grenard, head of events for SOS Méditerranée.
“Onboard, the realisation is immediate; it’s about people, not a collective."
The festival comes as Mediterranean crossings grow deadlier. In October 2024, 125 people died or went missing at sea – marking a significant increase from 83 in the same month last year.
The summer of 2023 saw the highest number of casualties since 2016, with 831 lives lost or unaccounted for in June alone.
