![On Sunday, December 27th, USPCN gathered virtually to honor this past year of struggle with a cultural celebration of our Turath, our heritage. #TurathBaladna featured the brilliant oud stylings of Clarissa Bitar, the spoken word […]](https://uspcn.ipower.com/wp/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/573a62f1-c40c-4d5b-8752-6435cbb2cf0a-620x300.jpg "A recap of our 2020 end of year event: Turath Baladna!")
On Sunday, December 27th, USPCN gathered virtually to honor this past year of struggle with a cultural celebration of our Turath, our heritage. #TurathBaladna featured the brilliant oud stylings of Clarissa Bitar, the spoken word poetry of Lubna Morrar, and a world premiere video drop and live Q&A with the globally renowned, leading Palestinian electronic band, 47Soul. Our evening also featured a raffle with items donated by artisans and makers across the country.
And help USPCN reach our end-of-year fundraising goal HERE!
The event was facilitated in English and Arabic by USPCN-Chicago co-chair Gloria Imseih Petrelli and USPCN-Southern California member Johanna Mustafa, respectively, as an honoring of the vast diversity of the Palestinian experience back home and in the diaspora, as well as an act of resistance itself: to speak our language is to preserve it in real time.
Palestinian oud player and composer Bitar kicked off our night with an absolutely beautiful set, reminding us that preservation of our ancestral music and instruments is not only a nod to the past, but a way of struggling against erasure in the future. Her new single, “Nada,” can be found on all streaming platforms.
Palestinian poet and community organizer Morrar shared an evocative piece entitled, “Burn Between Four Corners,” a powerful creed on identity, existence, and cultural liberation:
“Our people have suffered /
and in conjunction we have found that we are the immunity to our own grief.”
USPCN National Chair Hatem Abudayyeh offered sharp political analysis regarding the current state of organizing in Palestine and the U.S., with an emphasis on how we intend to continue our struggle under a Biden/Harris administration. And global feminist and national icon and leader Rasmea Odeh and I helped us look back on USPCN’s important work, including Rasmea’s defense campaign and our support of all political prisoners, hosting several tours of the Wishah Popular Dance Troupe and other arts and cultural groups, and #BlackPalestinianSolidarity organizing in support of Black liberation during the Uprising this past summer.
We raised over $25,000 from the event and are just short of $5,000 away from reaching our goal. Please help us get there as we continue organizing to defeat Israeli occupation and colonization and win our liberation.
USPCN continued the celebration by presenting our featured performers, two members of 47Soul – Tareq Abu Kwaik (also known as El Far3i) and Ramzy Suleiman (also known as Z the People). Gloria and Johanna moderated a conversation with Abu Kwaik and Suleiman about the history of 47Soul’s music, how their politics manifests in their work, and what international solidarity looks like to them individually as well as a political musical group.
As we look upon the year we are leaving behind, one of such deep grief, economic strife, and political turmoil, the moments devoted to celebrating community feel more vital than ever. Through a celebration of our culture, we honored our gains as an organization and the work of our siblings in struggle, and with the support of our community, we know we will continue to hold steadfast until Liberation and Return!
Thank you for all your incredible support, and Happy New Year to all!
In Struggle,
Monadel Herzallah
USPCN co-founder and Bay Area chapter chair
