The final conversation in our upcoming “Why Memory Matters in Palestine and Beyond” will be with Zaki Aslan, a cultural heritage specialist who served for 21 years as the Founding Director of ICCROM-Sharjah Regional Conservation Centre in the United Arab Emirates.

In it, we explore different Palestinian initiatives designed to preserve tangible and intangible heritage and collective memory in the current context. The discussion will also examine how the cultural sector can support those initiatives to resist erasure and combat historical revisionism, drawing connections between Palestine and other ongoing conflicts.

It was edited by Katie Marquette at MediaMarq.

Cultural heritage is a central part of our lives – informing our habits, our memories and our happiness. This also makes it a target during times of war and conflict.

The fifth conversation in our “Why Memory Matters in Palestine and Beyond” series will examine the rich cultural heritage found in Gaza and other parts of Palestine, how it lives and is transmitted in diaspora communities, and why its destruction is causing irreparable loss. Our guest will be Sahera Bleibleh, an Associate Professor at the United Arab Emirates University, specializing in architecture, urban design and planning.

It was edited by Katie Marquette at MediaMarq.

For the fourth conversation in our series, “Why Memory Matters in Palestine and Beyond,” we will explore the role of the media in the making (and acceptance) of atrocities with Yara Hawari, Co-Director al-Shabaka, a Palestinian policy network.

It was edited by Katie Marquette at MediaMarq.

While racism is widely discussed, its insidious nature can make it difficult to identify - and its role in inciting atrocity crimes is particularly not well understood.

To shine a light on this challenge, the third conversation in our “Why Memory Matters in Palestine and Beyond” series will explore how racist stereotypes of Palestinians and Muslims are deployed to promote discriminatory policies and practices. For this our guest is Professor Sahar Aziz, a Distinguished Professor of Law and Chancellor's Social Justice Scholar at Rutgers Law School, and the Founding Director of the Center for Security, Race and Rights.

It was edited by Katie Marquette at MediaMarq.

Can memories of trauma be misused or distorted? How can we hold multiple traumas with empathy and sensitivity? What would a connective memory, where different traumatic historical events intersect and coexist, look like?

The second conversation in our “Why Memory Matters in Palestine and Beyond” series will explore these questions and more with Marianne Hirsch, a Professor at Columbia University, who has written extensively on memory studies and the transmission of memories of violence across generations.

It was edited by Katie Marquette at MediaMarq.

Welcome to the first episode in our series, "Why Memory Matters in Palestine and Beyond." Here we speak with Ilan Pappé, an Israeli historian and political scientist, about the historical contexts crucial for understanding the situation in Israel-Palestine, as well as the attempts to both de-historicize these events and weaponize traumatic memories. It will also explore the pathways to rebuild the mosaic of communities that existed in the region before 1948.

It was edited by Katie Marquette at MediaMarq. Learn more at www.sitesofconscience.org

Welcome to our new series, "Why Memory Matters in Palestine and Beyond."

Well over a year has passed since the attacks of October 7, 2023 and the subsequent atrocities committed against Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. The horrific nature of the violence is evident in numerous reports and statements, including those issued by the International Court of Justice, the United Nations and Amnesty International, among many others. The situation could not be more urgent, particularly in Gaza where 90% of the population has been displaced, tens of thousands have been killed or injured – the majority of whom are women and children – and global food security experts are warning of a man-made famine. Immediate action is clearly needed to stop this catastrophic onslaught.

We'll learn more about the impetus for this series and the accompanying webinar from Senior Program Manager, Justine Di Mayo.

Our hope is that these conversations help us all build a better understanding of what has led to the situation in Palestine today, encourage critical thinking, and inspire action towards building more peaceful societies everywhere.

It was edited by Katie Marquette at MediaMarq. Learn more at www.sitesofconscience.org

Coming soon - Episode 6 of Why Memory Matters in Palestine and Beyond.

On this final episode, we will be joined by  Zaki Aslan, a cultural heritage specialist, to discuss the  different Palestinian initiatives designed to preserve tangible and intangible heritage and collective memory in this context. It will also examine how the cultural sector might support those initiatives to resist erasure and combat historical revisionism, growing connection between Palestine and other ongoing conflicts.

Why Memory Matters in Palestine and Beyond is a production of the Global Initiative for Justice, Truth, and Reconciliation, which is a flagship program of the International Coalition of Sites of Conscience. It was produced and edited by Katie Marquette at MediaMarq. Learn more at www.sitesofconscience.org