TWO exciting events recently took place in Athens and Thessaloniki.<\/p>\n
Their aim was, firstly, to present the findings of a new report on\u00a0Attitudes Towards National Identity, Immigration, and Refugees in Greece<\/em>\u00a0and, secondly, to explore how they might be used by interested parties in their work.<\/p>\n Local media showed a particular interest in the report\u2019s results, some focusing on people\u2019s anger, fear and frustration towards their country (for an example in Greek see\u00a0here<\/a>) while others (see report in English\u00a0here<\/a>) concentrated on how Greeks still show empathy towards refugees despite the harsh times the country is facing.<\/p>\n The finding that wasn\u2019t highlighted enough though is how Greek society is not divided in two groups \u2013 those who are in favour of migration and those against.<\/p>\n In reality the vast majority of people hold mixed views that very much depend on their own personal experiences, values and beliefs.<\/p>\n This important finding together with the report\u2019s segmentation analysis which breaks the Greek population into groups of opinion, make this study a unique tool for migration stakeholders who want to change the negative public narrative around migration and build a more inclusive society.<\/p>\n THE REPORT<\/strong><\/p>\n The research, polling and focus groups that made up the report were conducted by\u00a0Ipsos Greece<\/a>\u00a0with the support of SCI in partnership with\u00a0More In Common<\/a>.<\/p>\n Among the\u00a0key findings<\/a>, the research found that: \u201cWhile Greeks feel deeply disaffected as a result of over a decade of austerity, this disaffection has not been turned broadly against those who have come to Greece seeking refuge.\u201d<\/p>\n This provides a more accurate account of what the majority (67%) of Greeks truly feel about migration, and challenges the prevailing populist narrative on migration.<\/p>\n The report found:<\/p>\n The research also suggests that building a positive and engaging story of Greece\u2019s future should start with pride in Greek identity and in the character and efforts of ordinary Greek people at the grassroots.<\/p>\n It found that Greek achievements in the face of enormous difficulties were also to be seen as a source of pride for its people.<\/p>\n USING THE INFORMATION<\/strong><\/p>\n The two workshops in Athens and Thessaloniki in May brought together advocacy and communications experts, journalists, academics as well as INGO and municipality representatives and mostly focused on the people with mixed views, or in other words the \u2018middle\u2019 segments.<\/p>\n These groups constitute 62% of the Greek population and don\u2019t hold strong opinions therefore their public attitudes can be more easily changed, albeit towards either direction.<\/p>\n Together we tried to identify who these people are, understand each segment\u2019s specific concerns, what drives their behaviour and most importantly, how to connect and speak more strategically with them before more conservative or extremist groups do so instead.<\/p>\n What we have all agreed is that people in all segments have legitimate concerns which need to be addressed.<\/p>\n Refugees escaping war and persecution are not a problem for Greeks.<\/p>\n What they are really concerned about is economic uncertainty, increasing inequality, security threats and our joint future under these difficult circumstances.<\/p>\n It\u2019s time for all of us to start discussing more strategically these issues.<\/p>\n In order for that to happen, Greek civil society needs to rebuild trust with the public which \u2013 as the report shows \u2013 in the last years has reached a very low level.<\/p>\n This should be our common next big project!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n\n
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