#TheHug project is gaining momentum. Over the past couple of weeks, I have managed to convince people with real disagreements to hug, as well as adding to my “taxonomy” of hugs. I’ve made quite a gallery of images already: https://www.franmonks.com/thehug-project
My gut feeling that interfaith groups might provide a good source of people with different outlooks, who still respect each other, was spot on. Last week, I was invited to visit Oxford Council of Faiths - oxcof.org.uk - an interfaith group who "believe that what unites us is much more important than what divides us". It was so wonderful to meet a group of people who completely "got" the idea of #TheHug project and they were more than willing to hug each other regardless of their religious backgrounds. I got a wonderful collection of hug images from them.
Having found it relatively easy to get interfaith hugs, it was even more striking to realise how reluctant people were to hug when confronted with other types of disagreement, in particular those who voted differently in the 2016 EU referendum. What is it that makes this issue so challenging for people? I suspect it has something to do with how individuals on either side of the debate feel like the other is trying to materially change their rights and the way they live their lives. Or perhaps that’s just the way I feel…
So, I was especially delighted to find two willing volunteers who voted differently in the referendum to take part in #TheHug. They are friends and neighbours who fundamentally disagree on this topic. Again, I really didn’t want to be stoking up their disagreement by quizzing my participants. In this case we were happy just to go with the fact that they voted differently three and a half years ago and leave it at that. However, I definitely feel that their ambivalence about their differences is evident in the portrait I made. I had asked them to do something that did not come easily but then, that is sort of the point of the project!
I had a personal breakthrough when I turned up at my son’s school for a Remembrance Day service the next day only to discover that my Brexit voter was giving an inspirational talk about the role of women in the military. It served as a good reminder that we are all multifaceted human beings. For some reason Brexit has encouraged us to categorize people, putting them into one box or the other. This is never helpful.
Later in the week, I also bagged a lovely hug between a homeopath and a doctor. This was great because although they share the same objective of helping people to be well, they believe in quite different approaches. I’m not sure if #TheHug made them feel differently about each other’s methods. Perhaps I should have asked? Maybe I will next time..
I have also been adding to my general “taxonomy” of hugs, which is a far easier task! Some friends who were grateful to each other, a married gay couple, some sisters and also a newly expecting couple all hugged for #TheHug project. You can see them all in my hug gallery here: https://www.franmonks.com/thehug-project
This week I am delighted to have the opportunity to photograph Palestinian and Israeli youths from the Debate for Peace https://debateforpeace.org/ hugging. An illustration that even when it’s difficult, there are people who are trying really hard to build bridges. I have to say, I’m really enjoying being a hug midwife.
A Pagan and a Quaker hug at Oxford Council of Faiths