Daily Info sat down for a chat with Rifah, a project manager for the Oxford Human Rights Festival, which is now in its 23rd year. Activities include a hands-on ‘craftivist’ workshop, a night of spoken word poetry at the Oxford Blue, film screenings and an exhibition on expressions of Palestinian identity, expression and resistance from the Pitt Rivers. They're all drawing from this year’s theme, ‘Power of the People’ and are free to attend.
Currently running until Friday 21st March, read on to find out more about the amazing range of events on offer and why the festival is more important than ever.
DI: First off, what is the Oxford Human Rights Festival?
OxHRF: The Oxford Human Rights Festival is a student-led festival hosted by the Centre for Development and Emergency Practice (CENDEP) at Oxford Brookes University. Over the past 20 years this festival has used its platform to shed light on the importance of Human Rights through engaging programmes consisting of films, performances, talks, exhibitions and more.
DI: The festival gathers events across a range of mediums, from standard talks to a crafting workshop and walking tour. What was the selection process like?
OxHRF: In terms of our selection process for the events of the programme, the student-led committee is formed at the start of the academic year and during the first semester we brainstorm themes and social justice issues related to Human Rights.
We then think about which organisations and community groups we can collaborate with and the local resources available and put together a meaningful series of events that reflect the issues we are passionate about.
DI: This is the 23rd instalment of OxHRF. What have previous festivals looked like?
OxHRF: Every year the committee chooses a theme, around which the festival's programme is created. In the past themes have included 'Resilience', 'Identity', 'Home', 'Movement' and 'NOW WHAT?'. These themes provide a starting point to consider what these concepts mean, not only in terms of Human Rights, but also in terms of gender, sexuality, race, ability, class, wealth, religious beliefs, forced migration, homelessness, nationality and much more.
DI: Why was it important to keep the festival free? Were there any logistical challenges that came with that?
OxHRF: It's important to keep the festival free because we feel strongly that there should be no barriers to these events and that they should be accessible to everyone. We want to spread awareness and spark conversations about Human Rights and encourage people to celebrate the theme and show solidarity. Logistically, since the festival is not-for-profit, we have to be strategic with the budget and also the number of people we can accommodate per event, hence why we encourage festival-goers to book free tickets, as some events have limits on numbers.
We receive a small bursary for the festival from Oxford Brookes University Faculty of Health, Science and Technology, and also welcome grants and donations as we often need external sponsorship to supplement the Festival bursary.
DI: What’s an event from this year's lineup that you're especially excited about?
OxHRF: Since I am an Architecture student, I am really looking forward to the 'Beyond Buildings: Human Rights in Local Practice' talk. All of our events can be found and booked on Eventbrite.
DI: Finally, please describe the Oxford Human Rights Festival in three words.
OxHRF: To me, the festival represents Hope, Change and Justice. And also, lots of fun! :)
The Oxford Human Rights Festival runs at various venues until Friday 21st of March. Tickets can be found on the festival's website.