Banksy Funds Rescue Boat for Mediterranean Refugees

British artist Banksy is financing a rescue boat named the Louise Michel to aid refugees attempting to reach Europe from North Africa across the Mediterranean Sea. The vessel, painted shocking pink and featuring a Banksy artwork of a girl in a life jacket holding a heart-shaped safety buoy, departed from the port of Burriana near Valencia, Spain, on August 18. On its first mission, the crew rescued 89 people, including four children, and is now seeking a safe port to disembark the passengers or transfer them to a European coast guard ship. The artist and crew kept the initiative secret until after the successful first mission to avoid media attention compromising the project. Banksy's involvement is solely financial, with the partnership conceived in late 2019 after he contacted captain Pia Klemp via email, stating he could not keep money earned from works about the migrant crisis. In 2020 alone, over 500 refugees and migrants died in the Mediterranean, with the actual number estimated to be considerably higher. The Louise Michel aims to rescue people before the Libyan coast guard, which has been criticized for mass returns of refugees to Libyan ports in collaboration with EU member states. Other NGOs involved in rescue activities this year have been impeded by inspections by Italian authorities, considered excessive and politically motivated by the NGOs.