In this talk, novelist and human rights activist Susan Abulhawa will join with Alaa Tartir of Al-Shabaka, Aline Batarseh of Visualizing Palestine and Aimee Shalan of Makan, to discuss the history and context of the changing perceptions of the Palestinian struggle, what happens when the concept of ‘neutrality’ is disputed, why narrative shifts matter, and how - in an increasingly loveless world - they feed into the wider liberation movement.
Susan Abulhawa is a Palestinian American writer and human rights activist. She is the author of the international best-selling novel, Mornings in Jenin, and the founder of the NGO, Playgrounds for Palestine. Against the Loveless World, her third novel, was released in August 2020 to critical acclaim.
Aline Batarseh joined Visualizing Palestine in July 2021 as Executive Director. She is a community organizer, activist and development professional. She has extensive experience working with Palestinian and international nonprofits whose missions are focused on advancing social justice and equality for individuals and communities that experience systemic discrimination.
Dr Alaa Tartir is a Program and Policy Advisor to Al-Shabaka: The Palestinian Policy Network,a Senior Researcher and Academic Coordinator at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies (IHEID) in Geneva, Switzerland, and a Global Fellow at the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO).
Aimee Shalan is Co-Director of Makan. She is also a Trustee of Friends of Birzeit University (Fobzu), a policy member of the Palestinian policy network, Al Shabaka, and Chair of the British-Palestinian Council. Her previous roles have included: Chief Executive of Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP), Director of Friends of Birzeit University (Fobzu) and Co-founder and Director of Pressure Cooker Arts, a not-for-profit arts and advocacy organisation. She has been a regular contributor to the Guardian and other media outlets. Aimee holds a doctorate in the Politics of Palestinian Literature.
Featured Speaker
Alaa Tartir is Al-Shabaka’s program and policy advisor. He is a senior researcher and director of the Middle East and North Africa Programme at Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, as well as a research associate and academic coordinator at the Geneva Graduate Institute, global fellow at the Peace Research Institute Oslo, and governing board member of the Arab Reform Initiative. Alaa holds a PhD from the London School of Economics and Political Science and is co-editor of Resisting Domination in Palestine: Mechanisms and Techniques of Control, Coloniality and Settler Colonialism (2023), Political Economy of Palestine: Critical, Interdisciplinary, and Decolonial Perspectives (2021) and Palestine and Rule of Power: Local Dissent vs. International Governance (2019). He can be followed on Twitter (@alaatartir), and his publications can be accessed at www.alaatartir.com.
Online Webinar
