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Sandblast Arts

@sandblastcharity

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Raising awareness of the Saharawis of Western Sahara, their self-determination cause & empowering refugees through training and creative education.
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We’re looking for creatives ready to step beyond the conventional at Desert Voicebox!

Sandblast’s Desert Voicebox programme in the Saharawi refugee camps is seeking volunteer creative workshop leaders with experience working in unconventional teaching environments. If you’ve led workshops in community spaces, grassroots settings, or places where adaptability and creativity matter most, we would love to hear from you.

This is an opportunity to collaborate, exchange skills, and support youth-led expression in a context shaped by displacement, resilience, and lived history.

We’re particularly interested in practitioners across music, storytelling, digital media, and performance, especially those who can think on their feet and work collaboratively across cultures.

You can read about past Creative Workshops with the link in our bio. Get in touch to learn more and apply! 🇪🇭 by @sandblastcharity

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5 months ago

Desert Voicebox is Sandblast’s groundbreaking after-school program that empowers refugee women to deliver creative English and music education to Saharawi children, living in harsh desert camps in southwest Algeria.

Since its humble beginnings in 2016, Desert Voicebox has grown into a respected and integral part of the refugee community in camp Boujdour, the smallest of the five camps which currently are home to over 175,000 displaced Saharawis. Our one-of-a-kind initiative teaches up to 60 children throughout the academic year in a four year programme that runs 5 days a week for children aged 8 to 12.

We urgently need your support to train more teachers to respond to the rising demand for more quality educational opportunities outside of the classroom. Help us benefit more children to equip the next generation of Saharawis with vital tools to tell their story and advocate for their rights

Visit our website to learn how you can get involved — whether by volunteering, fundraising, or making a donation to help sustain this vital program.

Please share and repost! by @sandblastcharity

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10 months ago

51 years ago today, on the 16th of October the law spoke. The law affirmed what the Saharawis already knew, that the Sahara was theirs and theirs only, and the only legal outcome of decolonisation would be a free and fair referendum in which the Saharawis themselves would be voting for their future.

The right of self determination remains a core demand of Saharawi liberation, but this year we have moved further and further away from it within international diplomacy. The U.S, Israel, UK, Spain, France and over 100 other countries recognise Morocco’s autonomy plan as the most ‘realistic’ way forward for the future of Western Sahara. This totally contradicts what the ICJ confirmed 51 years ago today, and Saharawis are standing by their historic demands.

Saharawis are constantly being spoken for on the international platform, their future being decided by politicians who lay no claim to their homeland.

With this in mind, Sandblast’s team decided to speak to Saharawi youth living in exile in the refugee camps of Algeria to gauge what THEIR thoughts and feelings on autonomy and self determination are today, 51 years later.

Swipe to hear their voices.

FREE WESTERN SAHARA 🇪🇭
NO TO AUTONOMY 🇪🇭 by @sandblastcharity

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2 days ago

Today, October 12th marks the 51st anniversary of Saharawi Unity Day 🇪🇭

On this day in 1975, Saharawis across different tribes, political factions, and socioeconomic backgrounds announced their collective recognition for the Polisario Front as their sole legitimate representative, unifying under one and only flag.

It was a declaration of the people’s will to embrace the armed struggle for the independence of their country of Western Sahara, to liberate the homeland from colonialism and occupation.

51 years later, this spirit of sacrifice remains intact, and the importance of unity within the struggle is clearer than ever.

Despite the political setbacks faced this year, the Saharawi people remain steadfast in their will to achieve an independent and free referendum for independence.

It is only through unity and collective strength that this spirit persists despite exile, repression and attempts of cultural eradication. Through unity the Saharawis have remained motivated and organised throughout their struggle, building a fully fucntioning government in exile, educating generations upon generations of youth to carry their struggle forward and continue the quest for justice.

Today, Saharawis in the occupied territories, liberated zone, refugee camps & diaspora reaffirm their commitment to unity, and determination to witness the full and complete liberation of their homeland.

Long Live Saharawi Unity!
Long Live a Free Western Sahara!

🇪🇭 by @sandblastcharity

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6 days ago

Have you heard of Morocco’s deadly wall in Western Sahara? The second longest wall in the world after the Great Wall of China has remained suspiciously under the radar for most people.

But for the indigenous people of Western Sahara, its existence is impossible to ignore. Separating families, creating regular casualties from minefield explosions, and standing as a physical reminder of their exile, the wall is one of the most stark expressions of Morocco’s illegal occupation.

The wall protects and enables Morocco’s plunder of Western Sahara, shielding the occupied territories from the Polisario (Saharawi liberation army), and allowing for the extraction of lucrative phosphates and Atlantic fishing.

Despite this, Saharawis continue to resist the wall, refusing to accept it as part of their reality. Scroll to learn about Saharawi artist, Moulud Yeslem, who plants a flower for every mine lining the wall.

🇪🇭🇪🇭🇪🇭🇪🇭🇪🇭 by @sandblastcharity

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10 days ago

Are you thinking about running the Sahara Marathon or just interested in learning more?

Join us next Monday, the 12th of October for an online Q&A / infosession with the Sandblast team and past Sahara Marathon runners.

We will be talking you through the process of signing up, the marathon experience, and answering all your questions!

All levels welcome - DM us for the link to join 🏃 by @sandblastcharity

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12 days ago

This months culture feature is renowned multimedia artist, writer, and activist Mohamed Sleiman Labat.

Swipe to learn more about his inventive artistic practices, and how he is keeping Saharawi oral culture alive through documentation and art.

Labat now runs Motif Art Studio in the wilaya of Smara, where the Sahara’s next generation of creatives are honing their skills and finding space to express themselves.

Learn more about him and his artistic practices at motifartstudio.com

* image in Slide 3 belonging to the late Spanish artist Federico Guzman, mural painted at the Ministry of Culture by @sandblastcharity

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16 days ago

Morocco and Israel’s relationship is more entangled than ever after this month’s meeting in Washington DC.

Both nations have agreed to open full embassies in each others capitals, restore direct air travel and bolster business collaboration.

Despite Moroccan popular will overwhelmingly supporting the Palestinian cause for liberation, the Kingdoms ties to the apartheid state of Israel just seem to keep deepening.

But the two countries have more in common than just their business interests - Morocco’s illegal occupation of Western Sahara holds many parallels with the situation in Palestine, and looking beneath the surface reveals that Western Sahara is in fact at the heart of these negotiations.

The Moroccan government has surrendered its morals in exchange for Israel and the US’s recognition of its ‘sovereignty’ claims over Western Sahara.

Do not let this occupation and injustice go unseen.

FREE PALESTINE 🇵🇸
FREE WESTERN SAHARA 🇪🇭 by @sandblastcharity

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23 days ago

Are you thinking of running the Sahara Marathon in 2027? Run for Sandblast!

Here are 4 reasons why we think you should fundraiser for us:
1. We facilitate an authentic experience for you, where you can connect with the Saharawi community deeper than just fundraising for their cause.
2. You can see the tangible impacts of your fundraising through visiting our Desert Voicebox programme, where you can see the classrooms where it all happens & meet the classes!
3. We cover your costs if you raise over £3,000! This means you could potentially partake the whole trip completely FREE.
4. You’ll have the opportunity to be part of our Sandblast family, with support pre, during, and after the race. Get to know our team of returning runners and enjoy the friendships that outlast the race.

Sign up today at Saharamarathon.org and then commit to fundraising for us by heading to our website.

DM us if you have any questions!

🇪🇭 by @sandblastcharity

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a month ago

A taste of what’s in store for Sandblast’s Sahara Marathon Reps of 2027 🏃‍♀️

Sign up to run for Sandblast today for an unforgettable opportunity to raise money for a cause that matters.

Every step helps fund Sandblast’s work with Saharawi refugee children, advocating for their right to self determination and giving their voices a platform.

Apply today at Saharamarathon.org, and then head to our website at Sandblast-arts.org to register to run for us!

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Thank you @fitbyrowan for this incredible video of your experience running for Sandblast. ❤️ by @sandblastcharity

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a month ago

@saharawivoice co-founder Mohamedsalem speaks to our podcast host @alejandrotabrawi about how Israel and Morocco colonise together.

Saharawi voice joins us in our latest podcast episode ‘Palestine, and Africa’s Last Colony’ to explore how the Palestinian and Western Saharan movements are inherently related. In this episode, the substantive ties between Israel and Morocco are exposed, as well as the uncanny similarities both Palestinians and Sahrawis face living under occupation and in exile.

Watch the full interview on our YouTube channel, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Link in our bio. by @sandblastcharity

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a month ago

Is this Palestine’s most similar struggle?

Tucked away on the Western coast of Africa lies ‘Africa’s Last Colony’, the Western Sahara. Under Moroccan occupation since 1975, the indigenous Sahrawi population has endured displacement, exile, and complete political suppression of their identity.

As the Moroccan monarchy consistently deepens ties with Israel, the Palestinian and Sahrawi struggles become increasingly harder to separate.

Who are the Sahrawis? What is their struggle? How do Palestinians and Sahrawis relate?

Full episode out now on all platforms 🎙️
Link in bio 🔗 by @sandblastcharity

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a month ago