Becoming Pro-Palestinian - Testimonies from the Global Solidarity Movement

This book brings together testimonials from people of different nationalities and professions who are 'pro-Palestinian', whether as scholars, film-makers, artists, musicians, activists, or NGO workers. Using what oral historians call the 'focused life history', renowned scholar, Rosemary Sayigh, invites her contributors to describe the experiences, events, motives and feelings that led them to support the Palestinian cause.

The book is the first of its kind in Palestiniography and includes voices from countries across the world. A chapter is dedicated to each country and contributors are asked to reveal how they 'discovered' Palestine - given that Palestine is rarely mentioned in school textbooks or university courses - whether by travel, friendship, study, membership in a political party or book group. They are also asked to detail what specific forms their engagement has taken - ranging scholarly, creative, militant, or charitable - and what their hopes are for the in ternational solidarity movement. Finally, each contributor reflects on if they feel a just and equitable solution can ever be achieved for Palestinians, and if they accept the label 'pro-Palestinian' or would rather define their relationship to the Palestinians in some other way.

With testimonies from both high profile and grassroots activists, the book is a rich and personal selection that reflects the diversity, dynamism and global nature of the movement for Palestine.

Inhaltsverzeichnis:

Acknowledgements

Preface, Noam Chomsky
Foreword, Rosemary Sayigh

MIDDLE EAST
Hadi Borhani, Iran
Amira Hass, Occupied Palestinian West Bank
Sanem Ozturk, Turkey
Ilan Pappe, Israel/UK

SOUTH ASIA
M.H.Ilias, India
Vijay Prashad, India/Lebanon

EAST ASIA
Ang Swee Chai, Singapore/UK
Eisuke Naramoto, Japan
Ryantori, Indonesia
Hiroyuki Suzuki, Japan

AFRICA
Suraya Dadoo, South Africa
Farid Esack, South Africa
Naeem Jeenah, South Africa
Zahid Rajan, Kenya

NORTH AMERICA
Penny Johnson, US/West Bank
Dimitri Lascaris, Canada
Rafi Silver, Canada
Naomi Wallace, US/UK

EUROPE
Lori Allen, US/UK
Helga Baumgarten, Germany/Jerusalem
Sophia Deeg, Germany
Elisabetta Donini, Italy
Jane Frere, Scotland
Chris Giannou, Greece
Matts Grorud, Norway
Roger Heacock, France/West Bank
Anni Kanafani, Denmark/Lebanon
Monica Maurer, Germany
David McDowall, UK
Philomena McKenn a, Ireland
Luisa Morgantini, Italy
Birgitte Rahbek, Denmark
Leena Saraste, Finland
Lex Takkenberg,the Netherlands
Toine van Teeffelen, Netherlands/Bethlehem
Klaudia Wieser, Austria

AUSTRALIA, NEW ZEALAND
Stuart Rees, Australia
Janfrie Wakim, New Zealand

LATIN AMERICA
Bianca Marcossi, Brazil
O. Hugo Benavides, Ecuador
Helena de Morais Manfrinato Othman, Brazil
Natalia Revale, Argentine

Biographies of Contributors

Further Reading

Index

Rezension:

This is a timely and much-needed collection edited by a world-renowned anthropologist and Palestine solidarity activist. It presents stories of some of the myriad activists around the world for whom the term 'pro-Palestinian' is not just an adjective of personal identity but also a life trajectory. Michael R. Fischbach, Professor, Randolph-Macon College, USA