DETENCIONES DEL 13-M EN LAVAPIÉS

appeared between the two. Relationships with others is a saturated theme as all participants talk about relationships with others, whether in an abstract, more

generalised way, or in a way that is practically related to the project itself. This theme however is far more prominent for some participants than others, for example, it seems most important for DK and Jay, less so for Yusef, Tim and Jacomo.

When DK first talks about relationships with others, he says:

no no problem, no problem at all, you know, other people don’t phase me, you know, if you’re an a-hole, then you will, there will be trouble, naturally, but if you’re a nice, if you’re a nice enough person to me, I’m a nice enough person to you. I have no problems being with other people. (page 10, line 221).

The way DK talks in a way that could be interpreted as passive aggressive. The prominence of his phrase ‘no problems’ and its clash with the aggression of the phrase ‘there will be trouble’ alludes to the possibility that DK has had issues surrounding his relationships with others in the past. His use of the phrase, ‘if you’re a nice enough person to me, I’m a nice enough person to you’, suggest that a sense of equality and respect between people is important for DK. DK also says, ‘I wouldn’t try and force my views on anyone’ (page 11, line 239) which, linked with the previous comment,

suggests that perhaps this is something he had to experience previously and didn’t like. Despite, or perhaps because of, possible difficulties with his relationships

previously, DK talks about the benefits that he feels as part of relationships with others. DK says, ‘Just the fact when I’ve come in, I’ve met new people, I’ve spoken to people I don’t even know, which in itself is a reward for me, you know cos I’m not normally a social person’ (page 11, line 229). DK almost seems surprised that he has spoken to new people and by saying he is not normally social could link to the idea that

interpersonal relationships could be problematic for him. In this extract, DK’s use of the word ‘reward’ elicits an image of relationships with others as transactional, an

unexpected prize for taking part in the project. Other comments by DK can be interpreted as explanation as to how relationships with others are like a reward:

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thinking about how other people work, how other people see things in the world… it’s refreshing to see other people’s views for a change… I just like to, see where I fit, you know, its, I’d say its opened my eyes, it opened my ears, its opened my mind, and it’s opened my heart as well, to other people. (page 12, line 264)

This description implies that DK has possibly felt a change in his relationships to others from not normally being social, to appreciation of others’ different perspectives and feeling more open to others.

Yusef spoke about relationships with others in the project, with what felt like an underlying assumption that relationships were built after ‘the clapping game like kind of joined everyone together’ (page 5, line 108). After that, Yusef said, ‘Yeh and then, yeh, it just get to know each other straight’ (page 5, line 111). This implied that he felt people in the project bonded quickly, straight-away.

The immediacy with which relationships were formed also seemed important to Jay. Jay compares her experience on this project to previous experiences, ‘Erm, usually, within like, it takes me a week to get used to people. Where I just connected on the first day…’ (page 19, line 422), suggesting that something about this experience enabled her to connect with others more quickly. The speed at which Jay felt she built relationships again seems important when she says, ‘Yeh, I was late but within 5 minutes I got to know nearly everyone’ (page 19, line 412). Jay also says, ‘Erm, just by like the first day I could tell everyone was [short pause] connected’ (page 19, line 412), suggesting that she felt this experience was the same for everyone involved in the project.

When explaining how this connection was made, Jay said, ‘…it was just like we all knew, what to talk about, we’re all interested in mostly the same thing, football, World Cup, anything like that, basketball’ (page 19, line 423). The phrase ‘it was just like we all knew’ suggests that the interpersonal relationships were formed in a natural way that was instinctive and effortless. The mention of the World Cup also conjures up ideas around events like this that can help people across England feel united and connected, driven by a collective purpose and this may reflect the cohesion and bond she seemed to feel between people on the project.

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When Tim talks about relationships with others on the project, it seems as if these are people he wouldn’t usually meet: ‘Um, maybe just stay open-minded, maybe, like just because obviously you’re going to meet people who you don’t, who are from like completely different cultures and what-not…’ (page 4, line 77). Here Tim speaks as if he is giving advice to another participant, but this may reveal that he himself felt it was important to keep an open mind when building interpersonal relationships on this project. As DK did, Tim talks about the benefits of building relationships with new people on the project, ‘it was eye-opening to socialise with people who are studying different things and who have different opinions and what-not’ (page 1, line 11).

Similarly, Jacomo also seemed to feel benefits from meeting new people and hearing their opinions, ‘It’s been good. I like it because like I got to meet new people, and I got to see the opening, like, like on what they think about erm being in care and leaving care’ (page 15, line 320). The difference for Jacomo, is that what she liked was hearing about others’ opinions about care, which links back to her experience being rooted in the purpose of participation being about making change. Seemingly the more important part of relationships with others on this project for Jacomo was the sense of unity and affirmation that she gained from learning that others think in the same way as her: ‘But I think what I liked the most is how people like think the same as I do. And we all want like a change in the system’ (page 15, line 320).

In summary, participants seemed to see benefits from relationships with others who are different from themselves, as well as when they share beliefs or experiences. Participants also talked about the immediacy with which relationships with others were built and in this, connection and working together were important.

4.8.2 Participating with others. A theme across all participants was sharing