Multiple student clubs at Toronto Metropolitan University organized a captivating panel discussion on Palestine regarding culture, hardships, and more on Nov. 10, 2023.Â
These student groups included the Palestinian Cultural Club, Toronto Met Students’ Union, Black Indigenous and People of Colour Students Collective, Egypt Student Association, Arab Student Association, and the Middle Eastern Students’ Association.
The panel unravelled the rich history and culture of the land while shedding light on the ongoing struggles faced by Palestinians. This event was a voice for unheard narratives and the resilience of being a part of the community.
Palestine has faced issues of displacement for more than 75 years, with an occupation that has had a profound effect on the nation and the livelihoods of its citizens.Â
The panel comes at a time when the world is engaging in an international rally in solidarity with Palestinians following the high rate of civilian casualties since Oct. 7.
Jaberi, a member of Toronto4Palestine (T4P), a grassroots movement dedicated to advocating for Palestinian freedom and liberation, was one of the panellists at the event.
At the event, Jaberi shared some of T4P’s recent advocacy initiatives in and around the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). He aims to engage the GTA community in acts that promote unity and raise awareness.Â
“In the last four weeks alone, Toronto4Palestine has organized, endorsed, and collaborated close to 20 actions across the community, within the GTA and outside the GTA,” he said.
On behalf of the group, Jaberi said, “We hold no hate in our hearts, but a commitment to see the liberation of our people and our land, from the river to the sea.”
Megan Scribe, an Indigenous Feminist researcher, writer, educator, and assistant professor at TMU’s sociology department, also participated in the panel. Her presence highlighted the interconnectedness of challenges, given her extensive experience as a member of the planning committee for the Annual Strawberry Ceremony and as a community council member for the Aboriginal Legal Services’ Diversion Program.
She shared her thoughts on the violence and suffering Palestinians currently face through the lens of her background.
“There have been so many times where I’ve explained in disbelief [that] we’re witnessing a genocide only to privately remind myself that, as an Indigenous person, I’m surviving a genocide while witnessing another,” said Scribe.
Her statement provided an insightful perspective on viewing the Palestinian occupation while confidently expressing how she is a part of the movement.
“I think being in solidarity with one another can teach us more about ourselves while learning about each other,” Scribe said.
Mohammad William, another panellist, is a Palestinian Youth Movement’s (PYM) Toronto chapter member. PYM is a transitional, independent, grassroots movement of Palestinians and Arabs organizing to support the liberation of the Palestinians and envisions itself as a political home for Arabs and Palestinian youth to reclaim their role at the forefront of the Palestinian Liberation Movement.Â
His perspective explored the difficulties Palestinians in the diaspora experience, emphasizing the effects on community and sense of belonging. To close the gaps left by displacement, he emphasized the value of community involvement.
“We develop programming and events to help educate our children and youth and bring our community together because, as Palestinians in the diaspora…unfortunately, because we are not able to be home, we’re not able to live amongst our people,” William said.
“We feel a disconnection, and a lot of our children are growing up without learning Arabic and without having a strong understanding of their own identities,” he said. Â
He later spoke about systematic attempts to dispel Palestinian voices, “[There are] people that are being fired, people that are losing educational opportunities, and this is not happening because ‘we’re just hateful people that just don’t know how to shut up.’ It’s because there’s an exerted effort to make sure that we do shut up,” William said.
Moreover, the conversation gained profound emotional depth from Ayah Elmasri, a TMU student and a member of MESA. Elmasri provided a moving account of her personal tragedy, which highlighted the human cost of enduring occupation. Her story served as an eerie reminder of the dire and immediate effects of war.
“About a week into the war, I lost 30 members of my family because their house got bombed, with no warning, no nothing.”
Ayah Elmasri
“About a week into the war, I lost 30 members of my family because their house got bombed, with no warning, no nothing,” Elmasri said. “I remember this day so clearly, and I don’t think I will ever forget this day in my life.”
Omar and Wasef, members of the Al Asala Dabke group, also spoke at the event. Al Asala Dabke was established in 2007, and according to them, is the first Canadian-Palestinian Dabke group — Dabke being a popular folk line dance. In 2019, Omar and Wasef joined the group, kickstarting the cultural movement on social media. Their mission is to promote and preserve Palestinian culture in the Western world.
Wasef explained the long history and true meaning of what the Dabke means to Palestinians.Â
“Dabke has such a deeper and more important meaning, and that is preserving our culture,” Wasef said. “Because if you are people constantly being questioned about your heritage, your culture, and your history, preserving your culture, your heritage, and your history is very important, and we do that through Dabke.”
Throughout their discussion, they explained and presented how the Dabke came to be, highlighting the dance’s historical origins and its function in introducing new generations to Palestinian culture.
“Their homes a long time ago were little shacks. And the roofs were made of mud, and because the seasons would change throughout time [through] rainfall and snow, the roofs of these shacks that they would live in were made out of mud, and that mud would begin to crack.” Wasef said.
“They would stand together in a line on the crack that was beneath them, and they would start stomping to re-pact the mud, and that many, many years later, you have Dabke,” he said.
Sarena Sairen, the executive director of the United Jewish People’s Order, and David Wall, a United Jewish People’s Order member, also provided important voices on the panel.Â
Sairan added a distinct viewpoint to the discussion with thoughtful opinions on the relationship between Jewish identity and support for Palestine. Her remarks dispelled misconceptions about Jewish support for the Palestinian cause and provided insight into the complexity of the Jewish community.
“I wanted to start by describing what a pro-Palestinian Jewish perspective might look like, and I’m also going to address the misconception that supporting Palestine is contrary to a Jewish identity because I believe that it is not,” Sairan said. “Conflating all Jews as zionists or labelling anyone as anti-semitic who does not endorse the actions of the state of Israel is very painful for the radical Jewish left.”
“If you can imagine our interior between Jews, Jews are policing Jews and calling other Jews anti-semitic for not supporting Israel. It’s bonkers,” Sairan said.
Sharing a similar perspective, Wall said, “It is Jewish to support Palestinian rights.”Â
His remarks highlighted how defending Palestinian rights can coexist among various Jewish identities.
“There are different kinds of Jews; I grew up in a household where Israel was never mentioned. I grew up in a household where Zionism was never mentioned,” Wall said. “I grew up in a liberationist, dare I say, communist household where Yiddish was the language, not Hebrew.”
Each speaker’s unique connection to Palestine created a moving and nuanced perspective on the Palestinian cause.Â