PLAYING FOR THE PEOPLE
VIJAY GUPTA | 31
There are plenty of musicians who
play charity concerts for underserved
populations. But for Vijay Gupta,
one-off performances aren’t enough.
In December, the violinist left his post
at the Los Angeles Philharmonic to
work full time at his nonprofit Street
Symphony. With the organization, he
brings musicians into shelters, clin-
ics and jails to perform, teach music
lessons and engage in conversations
about justice and oppression. His
efforts earned him a MacArthur “ge-
nius” grant last year. The violinist
hopes Street Symphony, which is made
up of more than 90 musicians, will
help break down socioeconomic walls,
one jam session at a time.
—Andrew R. Chow
EMPOWERING ACTIVIST
GINA MARTIN | 28
Gina Martin doesn’t have a political back
ground. But in 2017, after a fellow concert
goer took a photo up her skirt without her
consent and police told her it wasn’t a crim
inal act, she made it her mission to change
the law. For over a year, Martin pushed the
British Parliament to criminalize socalled
upskirting, raising awareness on social
media and writing opeds. In January 2019,
lawmakers passed a bill criminalizing the
act in England and Wales. Martin has since
written a book inspired by the experience,
Be the Change: A Toolkit for the Activist in
You, that she says she hopes will light a fire
beneath readers: “I want people to believe
they can push for change at any level.”
ÑMadeline Roache
RESCUING MIGRANTS
SARA MARDINI | 24
Last year in the European Union,
104 people were arrested for
helping refugees—more than in
any other year on record—but
Sara Mardini’s story may best
illustrate just how fraught the
issue has become. Mardini
arrived on Greek shores in 2015
as a refugee from Syria, then
returned as a humanitarian
to help those who followed,
rescuing migrants from boats
and tending to their basic needs
onshore. But in August 2018,
Greek authorities arrested her
and four colleagues on human-
smuggling charges. They spent
more than 100 days in jail before
being released on bail. Now
Mardini faces up to 25 years in
prison if convicted. On Oct. 28,
Amnesty International launched
a campaign to pressure the
Greek authorities to drop the
case against her. “They think if
you criminalize humanitarians
and make volunteers disappear,
refugees will stop coming,”
Mardini tells TIME. “When
I came by boat in 2015, I
didn’t even know there were
volunteers on the shoreline.”
ÑBilly Perrigo
PORTRAITILLUSTRATION BY GLUEKIT FOR TIME; MAGID: CHRISTOPHER THOMOND—GUARDIAN /REDUX; MARTIN: GETTY IMAGES; MARDINI: FAHRINISA CAMPANA
