“I have learned and dismantled all the words in order to draw from them a single word: Home.”
Mahmoud Darwish, “I Belong There”
Palestinian literature is one of the great treasures of the modern world.
Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish, perhaps the best-known Palestinian writer, captures some of the beauty and tension of Palestinian writing in the epigraph above: using language, including the language of oppression, displacement and diaspora, to map a place of belonging— Palestine—via literature itself.
From December 2-6th, the world will have a chance to see and experience this mapping for themselves. Palestine Writes, a virtual and global Festival of Palestinian literature and culture, will take place in a live, on-line format, and feature many of the most important living Palestinian authors.
The original, live Festival to be held in March at New York University was cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
For novelist and Festival co-organizer Susan Abulhawa, Palestine Writes is a moment for Palestinian writers to demonstrate that “the power of culture is stronger than the culture of power.” Said Abulhawa, “As those with extraordinary political, economic and military force shrink the land beneath our feet, we will definitely expand our cultural and intellectual presence in the world.”
Headlining the Festival are luminaries of Palestinian writing in Arabic and English, including literary giants Ibrahim Nasrallah and Mahmoud Shukair; acclaimed novelists Hala Alyan and Randa Jarrar, and notable Palestinian visual artists, including Samia Halabi.
The line-up reflects an ongoing renaissance and recognition of Palestinian writing in the Arab world, where it has long been cherished. Nasrallah, for example, is the author of 15 poetry collections and 21 novels. His book A Tank Under the Christmas Tree made him the first writer ever to win the prestigious Katara Prize twice.
Writers Hala Alyan and Randa Jarrar reflect a more recent current of Palestinian writing published in English in North America to wide acclaim. Alyan’s novel Salt Houses (Houghton Mifflin) won the prestigious Arab American Book Award for fiction. Jarrar’s book Him, Me, Muhammad Ali earned an American Book Award.
The Festival will open December 2nd with an evening on-line Poetry Slam, featuring leading Palestinian, Indigenous, and Black poets. Among the featured writers will be Rafeef Ziadah, Ibrahim Nasrallah, Fady Joudah and Dareen Tatour. Tatour, author of the poem “Resist, My People, Resist Them,” is a writer and activist who has spent more than two years in Israeli prisons or under house arrest. Ziadeh, based in London, is perhaps best known for her poem “We Teach Life, Sir” was written during an Israeli bombing campaign against Gaza.
All told, more than 70 international scholars, writers, artists and activists will take part, including, Kenyan poet and playwright Shailja Patel; prize-winning historian Robin D.G. Kelley; Oglala Lakota educator and poet Mark Tilsen; and indigenous scholar and Red Nation activist Nick Estes.
A signal moment for Palestinian culture and politics will also occur at the Festival. For the first time ever scholar, activist and feminist icon Angela Davis; Palestinian writer and diplomat Hanan Ashrawi, and former leader of the U.K. Labor Party and long-time solidarity activists Jeremy Corbyn will share a stage together to discuss culture, solidarity and internationalism.
Palestine Writes takes place at a moment of promise and peril for Palestinians everywhere. The Trump Administration’s aggressive moves to move the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem and to “normalize” relations between Israel and reactionary Arab states like the U.A.E. have threatened to isolate further the lives of Palestinians under occupation.
This Festival seeks to create a sphere for Palestinian coming together. Festival organizer and novelist Susan Muaddi Darraj said, “It’s thrilling that the Festival will take place virtually—the virtual platform erases borders and allows people across the Palestinian diaspora to join us and celebrate our literature.”
Palestine Writes will also offer special opportunities for teachers, university faculty, and their students to attend critical discussions on Palestinian writing; author readings; music performances; cooking classes; and children’s programming age 5-10. Featured young adult writer Naomi Shihab Nye will read from her work.
The Festival will also span a broad swatch of Palestinian culture beyond the printed word. Mai Masri and Victoria Brittain will discuss Palestinian cinema, and Dunya Alwan will conduct a workshop on Culture Jamming.
People interested in attending Palestine Writes can register for the Festival here at https://palestinewrites.vfairs.com
“Culture Jamming”…. I’ll see about registering….
“Your love served me many cupsIf you like, I’ll tell you trulyI’m a real faqir and wantonShushtari is unrepentantI drink with my friend from the cup
Your love served me many cupsLook for me in the monasteryYou’ll see me slumped among the casksI love wantonly the onewho revives the souls of those who join himYour love served me many cups”
Culture Jamming….sounds like my kind of thing.