The arpillera "Here Algerians were drowned" is a reflection on what happened on the 17th of October in 1961, Paris, France.
“Here Algerians were drowned", a slogan from the night of the 17th of October (embroidered on the lower left image of the arpillera).
The red color of the arpillera refers to a red-tinged Seine river. Black and white maps and color maps appliquéd with red thread details traces of the colonial footprints; ridges laden with blood and violence. At the center of the arpillera is a small representation that says "paix en Argerie", this representation alludes to the commitment and active solidarity of civil society with injustice and impunity.
The text "Le massacre des Algériens étouffe depuis 50 ans" is related to the three embroidered faces; on the left two of them have a police bell and on the right the third face, without a bell, represents the disappeared. The faces refer to the commemorative plaque on the Saint Mitchel Bridge, installed on 17 October 2011.
On the lower right hand side of the arpillera we can see the embroidery of Fernand Parizot’s photograph/AFP of the arrest of protesters.
I approached this historic event online, whilst applying for a residency in Paris, France (2021). I researched the theme of the River Seine and memory, since the themes of the river and memory are a constant in my research. When I encountered the events of the 17th October, I remembered my own country’s impunity for those who went missing and how the truth was hidden. However, as I looked into the events around October 17th, I was able to understand - and I am still in this process – that with greater impunity comes the active responsibility of civil society not to remain silent and to denounce. We cannot look away from these atrocities and we must use all possible tools to seek justice and truth. | 
