We All Live in Gaza
Traveling Photographic Installation ~ Web Video Series ~ Humanitarian Mission
August, 2014
Reflections on a home town
Grand Rapids, it's where I grew up. Today it brings a completely mixed set set of emotions...nostalgia, detachment, amazement, comfort, confusion. It brings memories of growing up a decidedly round peg trying to fit into a square hole. I couldn't wait to leave to see what the world offered, yet I am back for ArtPrize and I have to confess all is fine.
But being in this town where I grew up it must be having a distinct effect on my psyche. Last night I had a vivid dream that in the morning had me wondering if it was a terrible nightmare or a profound revelation.
In my deep slumber state I visited my Uncle Isador at his home in East Grand Rapids. He has passed away years ago and although I always remember him as a pretty cool guy I can't remember the last time I thought of him. At any rate in my dream state when I drove up he was mowing his lawn. We exchanged pleasantries, like all Midwest relatives do, then he asked..."what brings you to Grand Rapids?"
I explained about ArtPrize and the portraits of those living in Gaza under siege. He took it all in and then asked me straight out...."so why are you doing this, why are you spending so much time and energy...I don't understand?" This is when I woke up in a jolt, fearing I wouldn't have a sufficient Midwestern answer.
I can't get the question out of my head. And I am sure I'm going to be asked this many times during my ArtPrize encounters. When answering I don't want to sound sanctimonious, I don't want to sound like I am on some sort of moral crusade. I don't want to sound flippant with the simplistic journalistic observation it's a "good story."
The only thing I can articulate as I write this is that my motivations and commitment are as complicated and complex as the Gaza story itself. It's wrapped up in a personal need to understand why the Israeli/Palestinian tragedy continues, in perhaps a naive belief that the "truth will set me free." At the same time it is a commitment of conscience as the Palestinians are getting absolutely raked over the coals.
And with ArtPrize itself, it's a personal challenge to meld a piece of art work that can appeal simultaneously to the two constituencies that envelope this event....the public and the critics.
This is not easy...the keys as best I can sort out in my mind....big, meticulously well crafted, aesthetically attractive, intellectually accessible.
And in the case of We All Live in Gaza a piece that challenges one's preconceptions. A piece that has a moral compass. Can it be done.....the only way to know is to continue press on.
And lastly for today.....a bit of shameless commerce. Commentorative ArtPrize We All Live In Gaza posters, and T-Shirts, are availabe online. Please do visit our Poster Gallery by clicking the box below.
If shots are fired and someone dies,
and no one sees, does anyone hear?
Apparently not if you are Palestinian and live far away from city lights.
Maurice Jacobsen
Al Aqaba Village
Sakher Burhan
Burhan family mourning tent near Al Aqaba village
Father of Sakher Burhan
A few days ago I was in Al Aqaba village for a visit....the community was in mourning.
A young man, Sakher Burhan, 18 years old was tending his family’s flock of sheep in the hills above the village in the exact same field where the community’s mayor Haj Sami Sadeq was shot by the IDF 30 years earlier. Haj Sami survived, albeit still in a wheelchair. Sakher did not survive.
After dark, on June 21st the Burhan family sheep began wandering back to their pens without their sheperd. This needless to say caused alarm and Sakher’s father, brothers and cousins began a search. What they found was their worse nightmare. Sakher had been shot in the chest, he was covered with blood, he was no longer living.
What happened?
The family is convinced it was the Israeli Army. A sniper bullet.
Does the family think there will be justice, will anyone ever be held accountable for this tragedy? The answer is a resigned no. Not only do they think there will be no investigation into the circumstances of the death, it was not even reported in any English language main stream media. According to locals knowledgeable about the incident the Israeli Army first claimed the boy stepped on a land mine. This, of course was a blatant misrepresentation of the facts, as those who found the body can attest that it was a single wound. The IDF collected the body and did not return it to the family for two days.
In the press not one word. Not one article could be found.
The Palestinian Authority printed a customary Martyr poster. The young man was buried, the family has moved out of their home to live in a tent away from the tragedy. They intend to move back within the month. Life will go on.
The other young men in the village darkly joke they hope to get married before they get shot.
This whole tragic situation, in strange way is viewed as a natural disaster. Sakher’s father in a matter of fact tone lamented, “it is out of our hands, there is nothing we can do except get on with living and survive as best as possible.”
We asked him if he was angry, if he hated the Israelis? No he answers “I don’t think about them, I’m not political, I’m a peaceful farmer. “
So should we as internationals care. Should we pick up the gauntlet and pursue the truth. On a very surface level there is absolutely no justifiable rationale for what happened.
If there was military training in the area, it was totally irresponsible to be using live ammunition in an area where it was definitely known civilian families were living. If it was a sniper bullet, deliberately fired at the boy this is cold-blooded murder. If it were a settler leveling a “price tag” killing, this is a hate crime of the highest order.
I talked with my friend and colleague, the writer Jonathan Cook about what can we do, what should we do. He is writing a piece for Al Jazerra that will be published soon. I am going to search for illusive funds so that the story can be pursued in an aggressive investigative fashion to try to understand what truly happed and to actively attempt to bring accountability to this completely unnecessary death.
And all this comes to light on the day that it is revealed that the three Israeli abducted teens were found dead. This will be a story that will have profound consequences. It is, of course, a tragic loss for the families of the boys, but the events surrounding the disappearence have caused hundreds of abuses of civil rights and the deaths of many Palestinians caught up in a dragnet to find the perpetrators of this crime.
There are calls for revenge. There are calls for tracking down the killers to the end of the earth. There are testimonials of consolation from world leaders all over the globe including President Obama.
But not one word about Sakher, whose family’s loss is no less devistating. This is not right. This is almost more tragic than the death itself…. the world community most clearly views Palestinians as second class citizens….this needs to be addressed.
What can one person do…..in my case perhaps use art to convey the inequities. To try to use media to help change people’s perceptions of the situation on the ground. To try to open windows of understanding.
In Bethlehem I am alone, making photos for the poster series, walking the concrete barrier separating this biblical city from Jerusalem. The Aida refugee camp is near. It is quiet, except for the normal sound of traffic from nearby streets. Then a loud bang, an explosion, and another, and another. Something is not right.
Then a distinct putrid smell, a burning of the eyes, “shit, it’s gas”. There is no immediate danger so I certainly don’t panic….there’s a souvenir shop close at hand, the owner Claire Anastas calls me inside.
I like this shop, Holy Star Gifts, I’ve been here before. They have the standard carved wooden pieces of the birth of Christ, but they have added slabs of the wall running through the scene.
I think they are the only shop doing this. It is good.
We talk about what’s happening outside. It is not good. Regular demonstrations in the camp over conditions, the recent clamp down by Israel at border crossings, the absence of tourists…today’s demonstration and gas is almost a daily occurrence.
I promise I will come back to the shop and order carvings to make available during ArtPrize, but today there are photos to make and the need to catch a bus on schedule back to Nazareth.
And the images....there are many, layer upon layer.
At this location they are created mostly by internationals supporting the Palestinian cause. In my mind this does not take away from their impact….words of warning, of anger, simple messages, some scrawled, some draw with great care and beauty.
The images will soon be part of the poster series that will be the primary fundraising source for the ArtPrize installation. The online store will open by July 10th. It is, of course, the dream of every artist to have a patron to support their work, in order that they can just get on with it. But alas, this is but a rare occurrence.
So the poster series is my way to attempt to keep a modest cash flow flowing to be able to pursue the story of Sakher and the many, many others who are caught in the geopolitical struggle over which they have no control. To try to find justice, resolution, and might I dare say personal peace.
