THE POWER OF DIALOGUE
The independent project Art3 Collective is committed to building a brighter future. Through public advocacy, educational workshops and social media campaigns, these sons and daughters of immigrants are promoting inclusion and calling for equality. We spoke with seven of them to find out about their experiences and their fight against discrimination.
When it comes to dismantling the abominable scourge of racial inequality, ignorance is among the graver and most persistent obstacles. Here to bridge the gap in awareness is the Art3 Collective (@art3collective.it), a multi-ethnic, independent project created to represent young second-generation immigrants. The initiative’s objective is to promote inclusion by way of public advocacy and educational workshops, and eventually via a television format. With a passionate desire to drive change, the group also channels its efforts into media campaigns that call for equity in contexts where societal narratives are exploited. “As children of immigrants, we’re instilled with the idea of being a burden on the country, which is all too often seen as simply hosting us even though we were actually born and raised here,” say Luka Neziri and Alice Papa, co-founders of the programme. “It has always been difficult for us to aspire to enter contexts such as politics and entertainment because we’ve been fooled into thinking that we don’t have the talent or skill to do so. We’re tired of being commodified pawns in campaigns or scapegoats for anything that happens,” they remark with good reason. “We’re much more, and we’re here to prove it.” Vogue Talents caught up with seven of Art3’s trailblazers to hear why integration and inclusion are the only solutions to overcome the faults of history and build a brighter future for everyone who makes part of Italy.
ALICE PAPA – 27, plus-size dancer and model
LUKA NEZIRI – 27, graphic designer and social media manager
“At primary school, when I was asked about the names of my family members, I used to make them up because I felt I was the only one who had relatives with ‘strange’ names,” recalls Neziri, who has Kosovan origins. “I used to hide my roots, too, and I went along with people who simplified my mum’s name from Mariyem to Maria. But growing up, we came to appreciate our background and to love ourselves shamelessly for who we were,” says Papa, who is Italo-Moroccan. “We wasted a lot of time and energy believing
we were somehow inadequate. We realised later that this comes from the fact of belonging to an intersection of different marginalised minorities.”
ARK JOSEPH NDULUE – 25, solicitor and model
“Being a black, Italo-Nigerian solicitor and model from Campania takes on a fair amount of significance at this moment in history. In light of the many pitfalls I’ve encountered along the way, I can say that the Italy they’re trying to sell us doesn’t belong to me, because the status quo of Italy’s media and institutional landscape tends to offer a false representation of minorities and marginalised categories. The creation of the Art3 Collective therefore represents a platform for us to say who we are, to represent our reality along with the multiple perspectives and experiences of Italian lives.”
DAVIDE JIN – 26, philosophy student “One of the many sad truths of marginalised people is the fact that, more often than not, they are stripped of any significant political agency in many subtle ways. Being an Italo-Chinese gay cisgender male, I’ve had my fair share of chances to experience this first-hand. Joining Art3 has allowed me to understand the struggle of other marginalised individuals, and it has also given me a sense of purpose to fight for and alongside them. As well as standing up for equal rights and equal opportunities, we’re battling for a fairer representation through the media that doesn’t dehumanise us.”
MARIAM EL HAOUAT – 22, law student “I have Moroccan origins and I started my journey with the simple idea of wanting to change things. Like other young people who have had a similar upbringing to mine, I was inspired by the need to be more, to do more for myself and my community, to feel fulfilled. Art3 is a result of the urgent need to change our society. It’s a project that has brought together talents whose creativity is sparked by the desire to be able to speak about themselves, to be advocates for themselves. I profoundly believe in the revolutionary power of dialogue, and Art3 is the megaphone for those of us in Italy who until now have been deprived of a voice.”
MARTINA PICENI – 22, humanities and foreign languages student
“As an Italo-Serbian, taking part in this project has led me to develop a more structured awareness of what our country really needs, as well as giving me the opportunity to consolidate and expand on the experiences of my life. Art3 is a coming together of minds and expressions, seeking to crystallise the need to carry forward ideas of unity, inclusion, knowledge and sharing. The collective places empathy and sensitivity in the face of prejudice, stirring the waters of an increasingly stagnant mentality. We simply believe that certain rights and principles must be recognised regardless of political affiliation or ideology.”
NAOMI KELECHI DI MEO – 22, media and information student
“Being part of this collective has prompted me to rethink how I perceive society through the different lenses of my Italian, Nigerian, Ethiopian and Argentinian background, while giving me the chance to contribute to a project that aims to represent Italy’s everchanging social landscape. Being a woman in Italy isn’t simple, and it’s even worse when you’re a woman of colour.
I faced an unbearable burden being black with an Italian surname. I was simplified and identified via Di Meo, as if it were a gold ticket. I grew up learning how to conquer my place in the world, while knowing that there was no seat for me at any table. So I made my own, with no gold ticket attached.”