Travel Tickets by Samih al-Qasim. Videopoem for Palestine (II)

Unyielding in its profound kindness and generosity, the poem “Travel Tickets” by Samih al-Qasim is a testimony of Palestinian hopefulness.

In the poem, the speaker wishes goodness even upon his killer, who might find, in his pocket, tickets to “peace (…) fields and the rain (…) and (…) to the conscience of humankind”. The poem doesn’t mention train or bus tickets like a Western reader might be accustomed to, but rather “travel” tickets - a larger, more abstract concept. It is impossible not to think of the travel permits Palestinians are required to have to be able to cross borders and checkpoints within Occupied Palestine.

Yousef M. Aljamal considers these travel restrictions as “current manifestations of Nakba” (in the anthology “Light in Gaza”). Even before the current, ongoing genocide, Palestinians were dealing with extreme border control which included the use of walls, military checkpoints, and biometric ID Cards, just to name a few. Often, Palestinians have been denied the right to travel within and outside Occupied Palestine, regardless of the reason - education, a wedding, or life-saving medical procedures. In light of this knowledge, the poem “Travel Tickets” becomes even heavier and more heart-wrenching, as it is the speaker of the poem - the Palestinian - who holds the tickets this time, the tickets that matter most. He is willing to give them, even to those who destroy him, with a deep faith that they might be changed.

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Samih al-Qasim was a Palestinian poet born in a Druze family in 1939. In his book “About Principles and Art” he recalled the trauma of the 1948 war: “While I was still at primary school the Palestinian tragedy occurred. I regard that date as the date of my birth because the first images I can remember are of the 1948 events. My thoughts and images spring from the number 48.” He wrote numerous volumes of poetry and held many public readings throughout his life. Despite being imprisoned multiple times because of his political activity, he refused to leave Israel (Occupied Palestine), claiming love for his homeland.

In one of his last interviews, he affirmed that “I am a resistance poet, and not only Arab and Palestinian resistance. I am a poet of international resistance.” He kept his optimism regarding political change, though he understood it to be slower than expected. Samih al-Qasim died of cancer in 2014.

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🌟 Credits:

Travel Tickets by Samih Al-Qassim. Translated by A.Z. Foreman, in A Map of Absence. An Anthology of Palestinian Writing on the Nakba, edited by Atef Alshaer, Saqi Books: 2019.

🎬 Director, Editor, and Narrator - Aron Nor
🖍️ Illustrator - Mina Mimosa
🖊️Assistant Director - M. Martelli

SFX from: freesound.org, 99sounds.org, and soundsnap.com

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Referenced readings:

Adonis, Mahmud Darwish and Samih al-Qasim. Victims of a Map: A Bilingual Anthology of Arabic Poetry. Translated by Abdullah al-Udhari. Saqi Books, 2005.
Alshaer, Atef. A Map of Absence. An Anthology of Palestinian Writing on the Nakba. Saqui Books, 2019.
Abusalim, Jehad, Jennifer Bing and Mike Merryman-Lotze. Light in Gaza. Haymarket Books, 2022.
Brown, Liam. “Samih al-Qasim and the language of revolution.” Middle East Eye. 12 Februarie, 2015. https://www.middleeasteye.net/big-story/samih-al-qasim-and-language-revolution
Institute for Middle East Understanding. “Fact Sheet: Israeli Surveillance & Restrictions on Palestinian Movement.” IMEU. 29 Noiembrie, 2021. https://imeu.org/article/fact-sheet-israeli-surveillance-restrictions-on-palestinian-movement

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🇵🇸 This video is the second in our series of videopoems for Palestine.

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🍉 We recommend donating to a fundraiser organized by a some of our comrades, sending money directly to a refugee camp in Jenin (West Bank), from which they are distributed on the ground - only a few days left to donate! ⤵️

EURO https://gogetfunding.com/donate-to-jenin-a-christmas-gift-that-can-save-lives/
RON https://gogetfunding.com/apel-umanitar-pentru-jenin-cisiordania-palestina/

🍉There are many other fundraisers and organizations you can choose from. We also recommend:

Sulala Animal Rescue - https://animalsaustralia.org/appeal/donate-to-emergency-grants-for-gaza/
Baladi Palestine Animal Rescue Team - https://www.gofundme.com/f/d2a54k-1000
Plant the Land - https://www.paypal.com/pools/c/8ZOXANH6Pz
Vegans for Gaza - https://4fund.com/xdh9gr

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Tags: #readPalestine #freePalestine #PalestinianPoetry

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