On Monday 30th October, I performed and spoke at the New Europeans 10th anniversary event at a prestigious location in London. The venue was so prestigious, in fact, I am not permitted to publish photographs or video footage which discloses the location – nonetheless, the glorious photoshop has allowed me to include photographs in this blog post without technically breaking this rule.
I first worked with the New Europeans in 2018, when the CEO Roger Casale, a former Labour Party MP for Wimbledon contacted me and asked me to support their Green Card campaign. I travelled to Strasbourg on two occasions to join Roger in lobbying for this campaign initiative at the European Parliament which would create greater security for citizens post-Brexit, allowing them to work and rent homes more easily.
After winning the ‘Young European of the Year’ award in 2018, the Schwarzkopf Foundation invited me to be on the jury panel for the foundation’s ‘Europe Award’. Having worked closely with Roger on promoting his initiative, I nominated New Europeans, who subsequently won this award. It was such a pleasure to see them receive this recognition for their hard work to support UK and EU citizen’s rights.
Below is the text from my speech given at the 10th anniversary event:
‘I am heart-broken that, despite our best efforts to prevent or mitigate the impacts, the hardest of Brexits took place. I know young people who feel like their dreams have been stolen, because of the loss of ERASMUS+ and the rising cost of living and especially mortgage rates, making home ownership a near impossibility.
My career too has been negatively impacted by Brexit; I am limited in terms of the travel I can do for my work. I have also stopped selling books, prints & artworks on Etsy, since most of my customers were in the EU27 & I have had so many parcels returned to me by customs - I decided it’s not worth the bother. I was also the only member of my art collective, Dare to Care, who was unable to participate in a residency in Helsinki in July, as all the other members were eligible for EU mobility funds from Creative Europe.
I recently filled out an Equality of opportunities form which asked the question “have you ever been disadvantaged because of your country of origin ?” It’s bizarre to think that the UK is the only country in the world to impose sanctions upon itself. It is legislative madness. And this is why I always have and always will support the work of the New Europeans - because citizens are suffering the consequences of politicians' poor decision making.
In 2018, I was awarded “Young European of the Year” by the Schwarzkopf foundation - and as a winner of this award, I was invited to sit on the panel for the Foundation’s Europe Award. I nominated New Europeans for this award & I was thrilled when they won in recognition of their Green Card campaign for citizen’s rights.
I want to thank you for your hard work & wish you a happy 10th birthday - I look forward to supporting you in the years to come!'
I also performed my song, ‘We Are Europe’ which is a joyous celebration of European identity, with the chorus translated into French and German. So many people approached me at the event or afterwards on social media to say that the song had touched them on a personal level – it was such a privilege to be able to connect with so many wonderful people through my music. The lyrics are below:
'Journeys to enchanted places, make memories on the way,
People talking different languages, you don’t know what they say,
But a smile is universal, so share one anyway,
Friendships start with laughter and then happiness is here to stay
We are Europe, we are one
Nations come together
Standing strong
United in diversity
On the pillars of our history
Striving for equality
Stood in solidarity
We are Europe, we are one
Follow winding tracks to landscapes in the distance,
The pursuit of happiness is sure to meet resistance,
But nothing is worth achieving if there is no fight to be had,
So put your faith in people and you’ll see they’re not all so bad
Nous sommes l’Eur
ope
Nous sommes unis
Les nations se rassemblent
L’union fait la force
Unis dans la diversité
Par notre histoire partagé
En quête d’egalité
Ensemble dans la solidarité
Nous sommes l’Europe
Nous sommes unis
Put the past behind you, our future is ahead,
It’s okay to make mistakes and regret what you have said,
Together we can make things better if we learn to talk and listen,
Founded on forgiveness a flag with golden stars that glisten
This is the pulse of Europe feel the blood rushing through our veins,
Like water coursing down the river flowing high after heavy rains,
Wir sind Europa Wir sind vereint Die Nationen zusammen Einigkeit macht stark Vereint in uns’rer Vielfalt Auf den Säulen der Geschichte Suchen die Gleichberechtigung Gemeinsam solidarisch Wir sind Europa Wir sind vereint'
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