The University of Iceland celebrates its fourth annual Equality Days, which runs until October 18. The goal of the event, which this year has the theme “Who is different?” is to raise awareness on issues of equality. The event hopes to promote acceptance of differences and focuses on what people have in common.

The University of Iceland. Photo by Dagbjört Óddny Matthíasdóttir.

Various events in Icelandic and English will be held during the ten-day festival. Among the events is a photography contest hosted by the Equality Committee of the Student Council.

Other events include a talk about queer matters and issues of equality by Q, the organization of LGBT students, and a panel discussion on the status of refugees in Iceland hosted by No Borders.

Minister of the Interior Ögmundur Jónasson, lawyer Katrín Oddsdóttir, MP Birgitta Jónsdóttir and asylum seekers will be among the participants of the panel discussion.

Performance artist Alexander Roberts will give a lecture entitled ‘Foreigness as a Practice of (Mis)Recognition’ about research he conducted in Iceland on the idea of ‘foreigness.’

In his lecture, Roberts will critique social processes of subjectification that lead to a person recognizing themselves, or recognizing others, as foreign in a society.

The International Committee of the Student Council will hold an exhibition, ‘This is my Iceland,’ which shares the experiences of exchange students studying in Iceland.

For more information on Equality Days, visit the event on Facebook.

ZR