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When I opened my eyes
The sky was stripedwith shapes of your smileas I laid in grass and dreamtabout us Suddenly I felta soft touch, a tender hugas I kept the memoryunder my hands And all the bugs they crawled the leavescurious to see what I meantwhen I toldabout home and your name They could notice and understandthat the story…
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Rojava: When Women Build a Revolution
In Syria, a special political experiment started after the civil war. This autonomous region, also known as Rojava has become a symbol of hope for ecological movements in the Middle East. Even though it’s threatened from all sides, this “women’s revolution” still inspires people with its universal slogan: “Jin, Jiyan, Azadî”. “Woman, Life, Freedom.” The…
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Let’s Have a Real Talk…
Sometimes it feels to me that a first impression doesn’t happen when we meet someone — but much earlier, somewhere deep within us. As if every new person arrives into a story that’s already been written, and we simply assign them a role. And just when you think you’ve met them — you realize you’ve…
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The Rise of Skopje’s “gaseri”
What are gaseri? Gaser is a word that refers to a member (oftentimes male) of an urban subculture that has emerged in the streets of the Western Balkans in the early 2010s. The name comes from the Slavic phrase “ide gas” which directly translated means – the gas is going, but its real meaning is…
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Rap Music is Here to Stay, Or Is it?
Rap music is an American minority artist invention with which students should take pride. Regrettably, rap music isn’t viewed as an art form by many Americans, but rather a trend that they expect will eventually vanish. Whether it is an art form or not, one might argue that it is a dangerous art form for…
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Has Money Killed Emotion in Sport?
For a long time, sport was seen as one of the last spaces where human emotion ruled everything: the fear before a final, the tears of defeat, the uncontrollable joy of an unexpected victory. People watched competitions to feel something, to vibrate with strangers who, for a few hours, became their heroes. Yet, for several…
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The Whale in the Swimming Pool
Millions of people tracking a ship pulling what looked like a giant swimming pool across the German coast to the Danish sea. Livestreams broadcasting the events 24 hours a day for weeks. Ministries, famous activists and influencers, as well as CEOs involved. And all this, for a dying whale. In the beginning of March, a…
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When football stops the world
The world is counting the last days before the start of the football World Cup on 11-th June. For the first time, there will be 3 host countries: Mexico, the United States and Canada. The World Cup takes place every 4 years, starting from 1930, and since then it has been held every four years,…
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Why I hate reading out loud
Reading out loud seems simple for many people. However, for some dyslexic individuals, it is a difficult task. Personally, it is something I try to avoid at all costs. It is a moment of strong pressure, because immediately, you think of the worst. You imagine scenarios: if you make a mistake, how others might react,…
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Balkan Songs, Shared Memories
Balkan music is one of the most unforgettable parts of life in Skopje. While walking through the city center, sitting in kafanas, crossing the Stone Bridge at night, or listening to street musicians by the Vardar River, music feels present everywhere. It does not stay quietly in the background, it becomes part of the atmosphere…
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Safe space
Caring ears, holding fast,waiting on every syllable. Nothing to be read in between the lines. A gaze, silence that says ‘I am here’. A hand close by, far enoughto leave room for opening. Lukáš Sabol
VOICES 