Palestine in America Inc NFP is a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating print and digital magazines that highlight Palestinians in the Unites States. We also pride ourselves on being a platform for Palestinian journalists to jumpstart their careers.
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All in From the Editor
This Palestine in America Encampment Edition is not just a record of protest. It is a chronicle of memory, of struggle, of defiance. It is a gathering of voices that are often forgotten or misrepresented, of voices that still insist on being heard in a world bent on silencing them. It is also a love letter to Palestine, to the people who risked everything to say her name, and to the kind of journalism that dares to stand beside them.
When I was asked to edit the Food Issue of Palestine in America, so many experiences went behind my emphatic yes: Hunting with North American Indigenous mentors on Pine Ridge Reservation, my maternal family’s history of enslavement in the South, seeing fields of cotton represent liberation on an Indigenous-owned farm on the Gila River Reservation, the violence I faced when I spoke out against Zionism and racism in my early 20s, and my friends crying as their family members were murdered by Israel in Gaza and the West Bank.
The last 300-plus days of the accelerated ethnic cleansing and genocide of Palestinians by Israel have been the deadliest for media workers since the Committee to Protect Journalists, a nonprofit promoting global press freedom, started gathering data in 1992.
The rest of this special edition will introduce you to those players, chronicling their journey to Pakistan and their upcoming preparations for the most important stretch of games in the team’s short history. As you flip through this edition, players like Tarik El-Abour, Malik Abdallah, Tariq Suboh, Yunis Haleem and Zaki Haj will stand out.
Through this edition, I have offered you readers a mere glimpse into the rich world that is Palestinian film–there are so many artists, producers, curators, editors, and more that I would love to share with you, but we only had so much space and time. That said, I am thrilled to be able to offer you a piece of my teachers and peer practitioners who are rebuilding the Palestinian image archive.
I never set out to be a chef.
I know it seems like a lie. My parents owned a restaurant for most of my life, and I know the ins and outs of the business. I also worked in other restaurants over the years, and I have so many friends and family in the industry. When I moved to Washington, D.C. in 2017, I started hosting dinner parties, sometimes for up to 50 people. I was never happier than when I was feeding people and seeing the joy on their faces as they took that first bite.
When you flip through this edition, you’ll understand what it took for Emily Ibrahim to earn a spot on the Palestinian national soccer team, how Ahmad Ibrahim — the Palestinian Golden Boy — achieved his ultimate goal of winning the World Boxing Council Mauy Thai belt, and how Laith Zalloum started playing basketball because of health purposes but ended up becoming a pro hooper.
From as early as I can remember, memories of my grandparents showing me what it means to be Palestinian and what our culture means to my family have forever been engraved in my mind. Palestinian culture has been my entire life.
In this issue, we have the honor of showcasing the world of advocacy, grassroots organizing, and political activism of so many Palestinians on the forefront of decolonial work. These people continue to dedicate their lives to the diaspora, put their bodies on the line for the movement, and be unwavering in their fight for freedom. Welcome to PIA’s UNBOUGHT Politics Edition.
I’m Sama’an, the guest editor for this special music issue of Palestine in America. I want to tell you a bit about where I’m coming from and how I got here before you dive in.
If you have the ability, I highly recommend giving what you can to help re-elect Palestinian American Rashida Tlaib to Congress.
This is the perfect time for Palestine in America’s political issue; the 2020 presidential campaign is in full effect, and Democratic hopefuls are becoming more and more comfortable criticizing Israel. Today, one of our Congress members is a Palestinian woman (Rashida Tlaib), a few other Palestinians are running for other offices across the country, and there are many others who are currently working on political campaings, such as Linda Sarsour and Amer Zahr, who are working on the Sanders’ campaign.
The cold reality is that Israel controls every aspect of Palestinian life inside the Palestinian territories. I hold a Palestinian ID, or hawiya, and a Palestinian passport, so on this trip, I felt some of the restrictions and hassles Palestinians deal with 24/7.
Next month at Palestine in America’s annual Palipalooza we will celebrate the relaunch of our website and print magazines with performances, art, and plenty of culture.
I created the website and print magazine to give Palestinians in the United States a voice; to give Palestinian journalists an outlet that won’t censor their ideas; and to help mentor young journalists.
Rasmea Odeh has made a positive impact on my life, as she’s done for others like me. Resilience is a word commonly associated with one of the strongest women I’ve come to know, and that is exactly what Rasmea has instilled in me.
This issue is brimming with beautifully written stories, raw imagery and hard-hitting facts brought to you by top-tier writers from the Bay Area to the East Coast–all of whom have helped to make this magazine what it is today.
Inside the second issue of Palestine in America, you’ll find analyses regarding the United States’ complicity in the horrific occupation of Palestine, the siege on Gaza, and a detailed look at the vibrant Palestinian-American community across the country.
The United States needs a publication that has a Palestinian voice with a dedication to Palestinian interests; A news outlet that dedicates itself to holding the U.S. accountable for its role in the brutal occupation of Palestine; and highlight the beautiful Palestinian-American culture that has flourished throughout the United States.
