Images of solidarity and strength in Palestine
Tadamon means solidarity in Arabic and these images show moments of strength witnessed in the Palestinian struggle for survival.
Moments following extra-judicial killings of beloved members of the community wanted by the Israeli government.
Moments in which people in the West Bank are forced to deal with their confusion and pain brought on by the Gaza war of 2008/2009 – combined with the Palestinian Authority clamping down on protest in the West bank at this desperate time.
Moments such as the bravery of children whose first language has become the politics of survival, out on the streets hurling stones at the wall following yet another bombardment of their cousins in Gaza.
Or moments of the villagers of Nilin and B’lin facing tear gas and stun grenades in their protests, held every Friday since 2004, resisting the illegal apartheid wall built on village lands.
There is a saying in Palestine that ‘to be Palestinian is to exist to resist’ and this essential stubbornness and refusal to disappear, this insistence on being continually present in the face of ongoing repression that interferes in every area of life, is a potent force in the demand for sovereignty.
The price of this is high, and people have been paying it since 1948. But there is no choice but to keep on paying it to resist is to survive.
I love and admire this Palestinian strength in the struggle for self-determination and the moments where dancing and joy overflow despite everything. I am proud to share some of these moments I was honoured to witness during my work in Palestine.
Tadamon Exhibition opens on the 3rd September 2010 at the Freedom Gallery, above Freedom book shop in Angel Alley off Whitechapel High Street. Nearest Tube Aldgate East. Map
The Tadamon Exhibition is open 12.00 – 18.00 Monday to Saturday and Sundays 12.00- 16.00 from 3rd September until October the 5th.
Freedom Bookshop
Angel Alley
84b Whitechapel High Street
London
E1 7QX
Pennie Quinton