Civic Activism & Digital Nomadism: A Working List of Palestinian Creatives and Activists

Introduction: Malak Al-Suwaihel
Words: Saira Malik and Malak Al-Suwaihel

Terms like 'digital nomadism' have come to describe the unfettered flow and instant connectivity of network and information sharing through cyberspace—a tele-communicational network that facilitates unlimited communication and information sharing. A similar language structures online social media networks. Through social networking platforms like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and the general blogosphere, activists take on the virtual-scape to challenge the precepts and pervasive persuasion of conventional news media outlets.¹ 

This revolutionary form of political and creative activism informs Palestinian online presence, which constitutes a digital nomadism that generates a cyber civic space for the introduction of counter dialogue and counter narratives that reach beyond the echo chambers of US-backed Israeli control over knowledge and its dissemination. Pushing the boundaries of Western mainstream media’s largely pro-Israeli rhetoric, Palestinian online presence complicates and outwardly challenges Israel's neo-colonial erasure of Palestine and Palestinians through assertive acts of reaffirmation of Palestinian history and geography—a counter-narrative of persistence.² 

Here, we have compiled a working list of these young Palestinian activists and creatives engaging a world-wide audience with more nuanced and experiential accounts of self-preservation and determination against the groundless violence of Israeli occupation.

YAZAN ABO SALAMAH

Artist Yazan Abo Salamah was born in 1993 in Jerusalem, and went on to study Fine Arts at Dar Al-Kalima College in Bethlehem, Palestine. He has also taught art at several community centers including the center at Aidya Refugee Camp in Bethlehem. 

Abo Salameh uses a mixture of concrete, pebbles, and wires mixed with Lego blocks and hand drawn figures to create miniature maps that reflect remnants of Palestinian childhood memories, present concrete blockades, and watch tours, as well as Palestinian neighborhoods from a bird’s eye view.

Abo Salameh has participated in several group exhibitions since his graduation and also won third prize in the “Let’s make it glow” competition, which allowed him to showcase his work in a group exhibition in Italy held in cooperation with Turin Municipality in 2019. Most recently, he participated in the Ramallah Art Fair at Zawyeh Gallery in 2020. He currently lives and works in Bethlehem.

instagram.com/yazanabosalamah

MUNA EL-KURD 

Muna Al-Kurd is a 23-year old social activist and journalist behind the social media campaign #SaveSheikhJarrah along with her twin brother Mohammed Al-Kurd.

Muna has been at the forefront of raising her voice and defending the land that she was born and raised in. She is bringing attention to the injustices and expulsions of Palestinians from their homes, particularly those in the neighborhood of East Jerusalem. One of the leading voices against this occupation, she is determined and unafraid to capture the attention of the West and further the voice of Palestinians in Western media. As tensions escalate, Al-Kurd was also arrested by the opposing forces on the pretext of “creating disturbances” but finally released after international uproar demanded she be release from Israeli custody.

instagram.com/muna.kurd15

MOHAMMED EL-KURD 

Internationally touring poet and writer Mohammed El-Kurd, born in 1998, was raised and still resides in Jerusalem. He writes primarily about dispossession in Jerusalem and colonization in Palestine, and his works have been published in international newspapers and magazines including The Nation, The Guardian, Al Jazeera, amongst others. His debut book, Rifqa (Haymarket Books), has recently been published in 2021. 

His family is currently facing forced eviction and displacement from the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of East Jerusalem, where Mohammed has been actively speaking over social media to bring attention to the atrocities committed by Israel in his area as well as Palestine at large. His conversations on these media outlets have helped outsiders understand Israel's illegal encroachment and has helped draw international-level support. 

instagram.com/mohammedelkurd

MALAK MATTAR

Gaza-based artist, Malak Mattar is an expert in expressionist faces, figures, and semi-abstract designs. She uses social media to showcase her work across the world. Now 19 years of age, she first started painting during the 51-day Israeli military assault on Gaza in 2014 when she was only 13 years old. Malak uses art to release her stress, anxiety, and fear, and has created over hundreds of pieces to date.

A year after she started painting, she regularly sold her artwork, and had her first international exhibition in Bristol, UK in 2017. Since then, her artwork has been featured in individual and group exhibitions in Jerusalem, Costa Rica, France, Spain, India, and in the Art Under Siege exhibition held in the Rayburn House Office Building, US House of Representatives, Washington, DC.

instagram.com/malak_mattar_artist

MONTHER JAWABREH

Monther Jawabreh was born in 1976 in Al-Aroub refugee camp in Palestine. A graduate from Al-Najah National University, Nablus, he works with mixed media ranging from painting to video art and performance, and also interactive and experimental media based on ongoing research. 

In 2010, Jawabreh was artist in residency in “internationale des Arts Cite” in Paris, and since then his work has been presented and exhibited in several solo exhibitions in Palestine and abroad. Jawabreh has also participated in artist workshops and residencies in Europe and the Arab world. 

In addition to his work as a teacher in Palestinian universities and educational centers, Jawabreh, currently residing in Bethlehem, is an activist-artist in the personal and institutional level, and he took part in founding and administrating some of the art institutes in Palestine.  

instagram.com/montherjawabreh

DIMA SROUJI

Dima Srouji is a Palestinian architect, educator, designer, artist, and a graduate of the Yale School of Architecture. Her work explores the power and influence of the earth, its strata, and its artifacts in revealing forgotten, silenced, or hidden narratives—specifically concerning Palestine. She works with glass, archives, maps, plaster casts, and film. 

Srouji is also working on a project for the Palestinian Museum to uncover a master plan for the city of Jaffa that was not implemented due to the Nakba in 1948. 

In 2016 she founded Hollow Forms, a glassblowing project that aims to reactivate the industry and revive the traditional craft of glassblowing in Palestine. Being away from home, Srouji found herself trying to translate her beliefs regarding objects—they are not just blank hollow shells but rather an inherent power that can draw people in and alter perceptions.

She met artisans Marwan and Ali, in Jaba’ village and has worked with them on her collection. The objects reflect the fragility of the political situation in the region and the fragility of the material that she sheds light on. She currently teaches design studios at Birzeit University in Palestine.

instagram.com/dimasrouji

MARIAM BARGHOUTI

Mariam Barghouti, from Ramallah, is a Palestinian writer, journalist, researcher, political commentator, and activist whose writing and reporting has appeared in New York Times, Middle East Monitor, Al Jazeera English, Huffington Post, Mondoweiss, International Business Times, and much more. Graduating from Birzeit University and later with a MSc in Sociology and Global Change from the University of Edinburgh, Barghouti's activism for Palestine has raised global awareness towards the often overlooked violent realities of Palestinians under Israeli occupation.

instagram.com/mariambarghouti

AHMED ELDIN

Ahmed Shihab-Eldin, born in 1984, is an American-Kuwaiti Emmy-nominated journalist, columnist, producer, and actor of Palestinian descent. An activist for the rights and freedoms of Palestinians and Palestine, Eldin wrote for The New York Times, Huffington Post, VICE, Al Jazeera's live talk show 'The Stream,' as well as an Al Jazeera live reporter and producer, and was senior presenter at +AJ. Eldin is also recognized for his outstanding award-winning work in documentary production, some of which include six documentaries for VICE on HBO and PBS's Wide Angle.

Recently, he has published his first book, Demanding Dignity, "essays written by today’s generation of Arab youth who have directly inspired and sparked a revolutionary spirit that toppled governments, unearthing the corruption of decades of dictator dominated countries in the Middle East and North Africa" (MiddleEastBooks). Eldin continues to be active online, bolstering the absented Palestinian voice in Western media.

instagram.com/ahmedeldin

SAMA ABDUL HADI

Sama Abdul Hadi, 31, is one of the first underground DJs and electronic music producers to emerge from Palestine. She first started mixing music in 2006 at parties around Ramallah, Palestine. A graduate from the UK with a BSc in Audio Engineering and Music Production, she moved to Cairo, Egypt where she worked as a sound designer for film, and later became a music producer and then instructor. Sama runs her own Audio Engineering & Sound Design company working across films and documentaries in the Middle East and has a publishing company called Awyav, representing independent artists from the Arab world.

In late 2018, Abdul Hadi’s Boiler Room performance and the associated documentary about the scene in Palestine went viral and more and more people are seeing that music has no boundaries—claiming space for Palestinian artistic and musical expression. She was recently listed in SheSaid.So’s Alternative Power 100 List, and plays a high-profile set at Ibiza’s World Heritage Site of Dalt Vila for the International Music Summit in late May. She is currently working on a studio album.

instagram.com/samaabdulhadiofficial

RASHA NAHAS

Singer and songwriter Rasha Nahas, grew up in Haifa, Palestine and moved to Berlin in 2017. Music has always been a way for the 23 year old to express herself. She wrote her first indie-rock song at the age of 15 concerning life as a Palestinian girl under occupation and the struggles to reaffirm her identity. Her much anticipated album ‘Desert’ was finally released in January 2021 after many unforeseen delays. 

The search for identity is a central theme of her debut album, and is heavily influenced by her relocation from Palestine to Germany. It deals with questions of her identity as a Palestinian and what the responsibilities of that identity—standing for justice and equality, being anti-discrimination, dealing with racism, violence, and militarization. The nine track album pays homage to her cultural background. 

instagram.com/rasha_nahas

MC ABDUL

Abdalrahman Al-Shanti, better known as MC Abdul is a 12 year old rapper from Palestine. He is spreading the message of peace, love, and unity through his music. His latest video titled ‘Palestine’ went viral after he wrote and performed a free verse concerning the occupation in his county over an Eminem beat. On the track, he shows the world the destruction and the chaos of everyday life in Palestine and uses powerful verses to depict the plight of his community and Palestinians at large. 

His videos have millions of views and has gained the attention of hip-hop star, DJ Khaled, who has also shared MC Abdul free-styling on his social media platforms. 

instagram.com/mca.rap

FAISSAL EL-MALAK

Faissal El-Malak is an award-winning Palestinian designer who was brought up between Canada and Qatar. Currently residing in the UAE, he trained as a fashion designer in Atelier Chardon Savard in Paris and has been working on developing his contemporary multidisciplinary Middle Eastern design identity by bridging traditional artisan work with modern design. Through his craft he brings attention to traditional techniques, forms, and motifs commonly used in textiles to ceramics. 

El-Malak has also developed a ceramic collection with Palestinian artisans inspired by traditional Palestinian embroidery, both visually and technically. These unique pieces bring attention to the makers, bringing clay together in a way which emphasizes the delicate yet tactile nature of both embroidery and ceramic. Symbolic motifs become visually-captivating sutures, drawing attention to the overall form of each piece. Through both of his practices, El-Malak has been able to support and explore age-old approaches to craft, incorporating and re-imagining them for contemporary tastes.

instagram.com/faissalelmalak

RAND DABBOOR

Ramallah-based graphic designer, Rand Dabbor received technical training in graphic design from Ramallah Women’s Training Centre (RWTC), the first vocational training centre for refugee women. She now designs postcards, stickers, and small cutout objects that are bold and colorful and bring attention to Palestine’s cultural heritage.

Her designs embody the lives of Palestinians in the past and she focuses on the traditional dress of each region—whether for women or men—and integrates it in a contemporary artistic way with decorations and colors. The decorations are derived from Palestinian tiles, which are manufactured in Hebron and Nablus. In addition to the use of stained glass, Arabic letters, and well-known landmarks in Palestinian Cities.

instagram.com/randdaboor

DAM 

DAM, is the first Palestinian hip-hop band founded in the 1990s and consists of three members, Tamer Nafer (rapper), Maysa Daw singer, and Mahmood Jrere (rapper). DAM’s refreshing and powerful music combats racism and tackles issues such as poverty and classism, all while combining a unique fusion of what is conventionally considered "Eastern" and "Western" sounds. The Arabic rap songs, lyrics, and music are written and arranged by all members of the group. They use Arabic rap mixed with Arabic rhythms to engage more with an audience of youths looking for more experimentation in music. 

The band was apolitical until the Second Intifada in October 2000, turning like other major rap groups (NWA and Public Enemy) to use their music to strike up conversation and to potentially impact policies in real-time. The tongue-in-cheek lyrics discuss the Israeli occupation of Palestine and other taboo topics that are prevalent in their region and beyond. 

Their songs cover important social and political issues, yet the music is engaging the audience with dance-evoking beats. The band raps primarily in Arabic, but also in English and Hebrew. 

instagram.com/damofficialband

BAYAN DAHDAH

Bayan Dahdah is a Palestinian-Jordanian multidisciplinary artist with an architectural background. A storyteller, she uses both art and graphic design to showcase her memories and experiences. She has written and directed Shishbarak (2016), a short film that she made with the Doha Film Institute (DFI) that screened at the Malmo Arab Film Festival and the Chicago Palestine Film Festival. 

In 2019 she also designed a portable artist’s stool known as the sarj seat which is part easel and part stool that allows her to sit and sketch freely wherever she goes. 

Her latest project is Ruwa, a multidisciplinary creative platform for visual storytellers across the Arab world, nurturing authentic and home grown visual narratives. Rather than trying to shape specific ‘local’ perspectives for an ostensibly 'global' audience, this platform aims to elevate and diversify the creative voices of the region. It encourages collaborations between publishing houses, academics, fellow creative artists, and local community-centered institutions functioning as a resource for connection, collaboration, knowledge-creation, and skill-cultivation in the region.

instagram.com/bayandahdah

¹ Parks, Lisa. “Kinetic Screens: Epistemologies of Movement at the Interface.” Mediaspace: Place, Scale, and Culture in a Media Age. Edited by Nick Couldry and Anna McCarthy, Routledge, 2004, pp. 37-57.

² Asthana, Sanjay, and Nishan Havandjian. Palestinian Youth Media and the Pedagogies of Estrangement. Palgrave Macmillan, 2016.