By Charlotte McCutcheon and Katrina Brennan
ON SUNDAY November 24, 16,000 pairs of shoes will be laid out in front of Stormont buildings in Belfast.
Each pair of shoes represents a young life that have been killed due to the war in Gaza since October 2023.
Enniskillen dance artist Dylan Quinn has initiated the event and is asking for people to donate children’s shoes to ensure the final demonstration can have the greatest impact and that voices from across the island can be heard in acknowledging the young lives.
The event, which is designed as an demonstration installation, will not have speakers but instead will present the shoes for people to witness the scale of devastation across Gaza.
Dylan has a personal connection, “I met Mohammed whilst we were studying an MA in peace studies many years ago. We stayed in touch and several months ago a group of us managed to raise sufficient funds to support Mohammed and some of his family members safe passage out of Gaza. It was very expensive and very complicated and sadly it was not possible to help all of his family,” he said.
Mohammed left behind his daughter and her family along with his sister and her children. They had all been living together in a tent prior to him escaping.
“Mohammed told me how he had cared for the young children whilst they were forced to live in a tent enduring explosions all around. A number of week’s ago Mohammed received the devastating news that Lana, his four year old niece who had been living in the tent with him during the months of terror, had been shot and killed,” Dylan explained.
“A number of days ago his neighbours 12-year-old child was killed when a bomb exploded on top of her house which was beside where Mohammed used to live.”
Shoes of the children is about acknowledging and remembering Lana along with the thousands of other children’s lives which have been taken.
“I wanted something that would present some sort of representation of the scale of lives being lost 17,000 people now, that’s every single person living in Fermanagh and Omagh under the age of 25, that is just the young people nevermind the 41,000 people in total.
“In order to accumulate the number of shoes required, various drop off points have been organised across the island. “If they are in the Fermanagh area they can leave them with me, we have a drop off in the FIND centre or with me in 4 Old Henry Street.”
Further information can be found via it or by contacting Dylan Quinn directly on shoesofthechildren@gmail.com.
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