(part 1) VIDEO: https://youtu.be/Wh0x9rB3zis
(part 2) INTERVIEWS AUDIO: https://youtu.be/q87-ahaMUfU
Video Description: This inspiring compilation is titled What the Media Won't Show You. I captured these videos at the multiple Palestine protests I've attended over the past 2 months, from 2022, and 2021. These eye-opening words are by Nerdeen Kiswani, Palestinian activist and founder of Within Our Lifetime (WOL), an organization whose goal is for the liberation/decolonization of Palestine and the right of return for those in refugee camps and in diaspora. The song featured in the video is "Balak" by Zeyne a Palestinian/Jordanian artist, her music is amazing and I recommend checking her out if this song is up your alley.
The goal of these interviews is to objectively comment on how stereotypes perpetuate the dehumanization of the Middle East and Muslim-majority countries. It also shows the juxtaposition of Muslim vs. non-Muslim participants. injustices incurred by the West upon arab/Muslim nations have always been a priority for Muslims. The majority of us have always stayed informed and advocated on behalf of our brothers and sisters in Gaza and the West Bank since our youth. Regardless of this fact, the fight against oppression and the fight against colonialism is not an Arab issue, and it is not a Muslim issue, it is a human issue. Zionism is not political, it hasn’t been since the first Nakba. Genocide is not political, it has never been, we won’t start now. This is about humanity and greed. I implore viewers to further educate themselves beyond the Instagram reposts. As critical as it is to be voices for Gaza right now. It is equally important to research, read, and educate ourselves on the history of Palestine. Of a culture and indigenous people that have existed long before 1948. I implore viewers to educate themselves on Western influences in the Middle East. The colonial and imperialist history that has shaped the state of most Middle Eastern and African countries today, before dehumanizing cultures and nations under classifications such as “third-world”. We are all human, we need empathy and knowledge now more than ever, we have lived blindly for far too long. To be willfully ignorant is to be complicit. Stand on the right side of history.
“Small actions foster change. Our activism, like any other part of ourselves, develops into something bigger than a singular experience. Activism is a collective action and an investment in the lives of other people. And, as the late artist Thornton Dial once said, “If there is one thing that you can do, leave something for somebody else . . . You can work for somebody else’s freedom. You can leave something for somebody else’s child” (Drew 47).
“As artistic activists, our job is to not only to fight battles within the legitimate or prescribed arenas of politics, but to expand the very idea of the political and define new terrains of struggle and change” (Duncombe, Lambert 122).
“I’m asking an individual to not only create their own associations with their lived experience but also imagine that same movement embodied by a very different person” (Soto 2022)
Drew, K. (2020). This Is What I Know About Art. Penguin.
Lambert, S. (2021). ART OF ACTIVISM: your all-purpose guide to making the impossible possible. Or Books.
I became extremely emotional while creating this piece during filming and editing. That this is the world we live in. Why do we have to display the destruction, the death, the sickness, the grief, the crimes against our brothers and sisters to earn the empathy of the West? Why is it that despite these horrific images circulating on social media over the past two months, nothing has been done? Where are our so-called world leaders? This is not okay none of this is okay. I personally have fought for Palestinian liberation for years, but it wasn't until the media called us terrorists that anyone actually started paying attention and educating themselves. When will we realize that this is an institutional problem? Our country is founded on imperialism and colonialism. We excused the annihilation of indigenous tribes with the concept of "manifest destiny". We exist under the pretext of "equality" but racism and white supremacy are the foundation of the U.S. The American dream is a guise, it's a tool that the U.S. uses to perpetuate the rat race and economic segregation. Be skeptical, live mindfully, and educate yourself on the world that you live in. Future generations will question where you were and what you did during this time. The most important message we've learned in this class has been legacy from Kimberly Drew. Fight for those who come after you, create things that will exist beyond you, extend yourself!
The U.S. Government, your government uses your tax dollars to fund and endorse the genocide and erasure of Palestinians. We live ignorantly in the West wondering how the world got here. Wake up! It's been here! Change it, do everything in your power! How do we call ourselves human to do anything other than that?
Inspirations + Quotes:
“Small actions foster change. Our activism, like any other part of ourselves, develops into something bigger than a singular experience. Activism is a collective action and an investment in the lives of other people. And, as the late artist Thornton Dial once said, “If there is one thing that you can do, leave something for somebody else . . . You can work for somebody else’s freedom. You can leave something for somebody else’s child” (Drew 47).
- Maryam (Videographer) tiktok handle: @b.rolltraveller - medium + creating an emotional connection
- Kimberly Drew (Author, Curator) - legacy
- Shaun Leonardo (Performance artist) - empathy, anti-individualism
- Shiraga Kazuo (Performance Artist) - resistance
Citations:
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