The 12th Anti - Racist Festival Thessaloniki - 12ου Αντιρατσιστικού Φεστιβάλ Θεσσαλονίκη

The 12th Anti - Racist Festival Thessaloniki - 12ου Αντιρατσιστικού Φεστιβάλ Θεσσαλονίκη, originally uploaded by Teacher Dude's BBQ.

This was taken last night at the 12th Anti-Racist Festival here in Thessaloniki during a theatrical performance. The actors braved it despite the fact that it started raining and later we witnessed a torrential downpour which flooded large parts of the centre. Let's hope that the next two days of the event they have better luck with the weather.

Actually, the whole event is a breathe of of fresh air, a reminder that the clownish local politicians and thuggish right wing politics that the city is identified with in much of Greece do not represent everyone here.

There are plenty of people who care about issues such as ecology, immigration, equal rights etc more than just once every four years when elections are looming, people who are taking a stand against the growing tide of xenophobia and nationalistic conservatism that seems to have gripped the city over the last few years.