In order to show my support for palestine, I thought I would make a post— in typical bird nerd fashion— highlighting some information about one of the many symbols of freedom for the palestinian people: the palestine sunbird.
you’ve seen this bird everywhere lately I’m sure,
so, you may be wondering.. why is this bird so important?
In 2013, Israel campaigned to remove ‘palestine’ from the bird’s name. this failed, however, when the palestine wildlife society (PWS) petitioned to instead adopt it as palestine’s national bird as a direct defiance of the campaign.
in 2015, the palestine sunbird was officially declared the national bird of palestine.
the palestinian artist khaled jarrar designed a border control stamp featuring the sunbird with which he stamped passports as a cry for freedom.
more recently, khaled jarrar has also created these postal stamps for the same message— in defiance of israel’s efforts to erase palestine.
here you can find an incredible, short documentary detailing his work across the years to use his art as a protest against the plight of the palestinian people.
another palestinian artist, rasha eleyan, uses the sunbird in her work as a motif for the strength and boldness of palestinian women:
the palestinian poet tamim al-barghouti has tied the palestine sunbird’s beauty to resilience, in saying: “whenever you face injustice or roughness, remember to defend yourself by finding beauty… document, prove, and defend it because all beauty is resistance.”
the palestine sunbird is a symbol of hope and strength. It’s a symbol of fighting back against the odds and refusal to go quietly into the night— refusal to be erased.
continue to support palestinian artists.
continue to support palestine.
raise the voices of those who now, more than ever, need to be heard.
from the river to the sea, palestine will be free.
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