ISSUE: In the occupied territories of Palestine people are displaced, communitties are strugling to stay together and little connection to the outside world is accessible. During this time, people living in the refugee camps of the West Bank experience deprivation and loss of identity. Outside resources to aleviate these grievances are often funneled indirectly to ways and people that do not help the community efficiently. Even though we live in the age of communication there are clear stereotypes about ‘refugee status’ and ‘Palestinian’, and in order for them to build relationships with the international community and create opportunities to prosper there should be a bridge for dialogue. Educational opportunities as well as ways to generally express trauma especially for refugee children and youth, are very limited.
PROJECT: The main idea behind this project is to bridge communication and educational opportunities to the children and youth of West Bank. This project will continue their learning and let the rest of the world become apart of their struggle. The refugee experiences are priceless and their resilience needs to be addressed, providing scholarships and further opportunity. The “Graphic Novels of Nablus: Creatively projecting resilience in war” program is for the children and youth of Nablus refugee camps. They will create 5-page graphic stories while whill be compiled with their personal accounts of living under occupation and hope for peace, to create a piece of literature based on sequential art. This can be used as a book for fundraising and awareness building. We can 'help' build the community and reduce possibilities of violence amongst dehumanized and displaced persons. This project is a constructive way to revive the positivity that thrives amongst these youths in the eyes od the ingternational community. We can bridge ways to express the Palestinian plight in a creative and positive manner. The graphic novel can also be a basis for other projects in the future. Graphic novels are essentially “sequential art” — a series of illustrations which, when viewed in order, tell a story. The goal of the project is to help the children/youth to project their feelings of frustration in a constructive, creative manner and build their communication tools to the outside world. With creating their own smaller version of a graphic novel, we can see the life and mind of a child/youth refugee in Nablus, much like the recently famous graphic novel (and now movie) Persepolis.
GOALS: The children/youth are exposed to this interesting form of literature and are able to apply their knowledge of English or French in the process. Life-long relationships are created during the process, where they can see the development of their pieces and work with the instructor. They are provided guidance and support to help them attain a finished product and during this they develop feelings of accomplishment, confidence and achievement. The examples that will be brought can expand the library. The pieces they create can be reprinted, compiled into a book, and sold for fundraising which gives back to their own community. Finally above all else, the project can give the children/youth hope and push their ambitions for the future.
BENEFITS:
- The kids/youth are able to project their feelings of frustration
- They are able to apply their knowledge of English as a second language
- Develop feelings of accomplishment, confidence and achievement
- Develop artwork that can be reprinted, compiled into a book, and sold for fundraising.
- Give them hope and push their ambitions for the future