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A review by samusc
Palestine Speaks: Narratives of Life Under Occupation by Cate Malek, Mateo Hoke
challenging
emotional
informative
sad
medium-paced
5.0
I placed a hold on this title as it was one of the few books concerning Palestine liberation that my local library system had access to. I've since brought it with me to local governing meetings which advocate for a ceasefire resolution. While it was published a decade ago, these transcribed oral history interviews are just as relevant now. Ranging from generational fishermen reduced to fishing in an area no larger than 3 square miles to founders of some of the most well-known solidarity organizations, these emotional conversations paint images of daily life in this oppression.
The most challenging passage to me, was the conversation with Ebtihaj Be'erat. One of her sons, Abdal Aziz, had been killed by the Israeli military when he was shot in the leg and soldiers prevented medical staff and community members from reaching him for hours until he bled out. The loss of Abdal is shattering in it's needless cruelty, and with acknowledgement that he's the same age as my older brother Ben. Who knows how many dreams he could have achieved he were 36 today, instead of martyred at 21.
Alongside countless trauma, there are also moments of joy including recalled first meetings of spouses falling in love, miraculous childbirth, and teens passing their exams for acceptance into university. There was one particularly humorous tale of a group of academic men chasing cows across the hills, as they were unfamiliar with animal handling, but wanted to ensure the neighborhood had access to fresh milk.
There was one interview with a settler who worked as a security guard for the Eli settlement, that I could have done without.
This title is very well structured in that each passage contains numerous citations for geographical or cultural context in the index. There's also an extensive timeline that I could see being helpful in an academic setting. I highly recommend Palestine Speaks: Narratives of Life Under Occupation for anyone looking to learn more about this occupation. Free Palestine today, tomorrow, and forever.
This was the first Voice of Witness book I've encountered, and I plan to read How We Go Home: Voices from Indigenous North America.
The most challenging passage to me, was the conversation with Ebtihaj Be'erat. One of her sons, Abdal Aziz, had been killed by the Israeli military when he was shot in the leg and soldiers prevented medical staff and community members from reaching him for hours until he bled out. The loss of Abdal is shattering in it's needless cruelty, and with acknowledgement that he's the same age as my older brother Ben. Who knows how many dreams he could have achieved he were 36 today, instead of martyred at 21.
Alongside countless trauma, there are also moments of joy including recalled first meetings of spouses falling in love, miraculous childbirth, and teens passing their exams for acceptance into university. There was one particularly humorous tale of a group of academic men chasing cows across the hills, as they were unfamiliar with animal handling, but wanted to ensure the neighborhood had access to fresh milk.
There was one interview with a settler who worked as a security guard for the Eli settlement, that I could have done without.
This title is very well structured in that each passage contains numerous citations for geographical or cultural context in the index. There's also an extensive timeline that I could see being helpful in an academic setting. I highly recommend Palestine Speaks: Narratives of Life Under Occupation for anyone looking to learn more about this occupation. Free Palestine today, tomorrow, and forever.
This was the first Voice of Witness book I've encountered, and I plan to read How We Go Home: Voices from Indigenous North America.