TAKE ONE ACTION!
economic exploitation, with racism, xenophobia, homophobia, religious hatred, environmental destruction. And all the women – including of course trans, disabled and migrant women – and the men who push back against these forms of oppression, are joining forces across what would have traditionally been entrenched divides. This is a radically different path towards equity – and a formidable source of hope.’
The question of hope is one that remains entrenched in the back of Ayesh’s mind, and though the current political situation has removed some of her optimism, her hope for the future of Palestine remains intact.
‘The hope is always for Palestinians to have their justice and to have their security and to live in peace,’ she says. ‘This is the general hope for every Palestinian; to have our independence like other people in the world. The main message of the i lm is a message for the youth; to learn from the experiences of the older generation. At the end of the i lm, you will see a clip of my son and this is a very clever message from Julia, because it shows that it’s time for the Palestinian youth to take the initiative and to take on an important role in society. ‘The second message is that when we as Palestinians are united, we are strong. I want the international community to see what is going on and how much the Palestinians suffer from the occupation. They must know that Palestinian people deserve to have their rights. The i lm may focus on my story but it is the story of thousands of Palestinian families. It’s not personal, it belongs to everyone.’
Take One Action! Film Festival, various venues, Edinburgh & Glasgow, Wed 12–Sun 23 Sep, full programme at takeoneaction.org.uk
The documentary, created by Brazilian i lmmaker Julia Bacha, offers a touching and emotional portrait of an incredible woman who fought with tenacity and spirit for liberation from military occupation and gender equality, alongside a generation of Palestinians, despite being imprisoned, deported, tortured and more. Naila and the Uprising is a painful reminder of a movement that is far from over, one that Ayesh believes women have largely been erased from. When asked about the importance of the Sisters strand and i lms like Naila and the Uprising, Van Strijthem says: ‘Feminism may have, at times, been reduced to a privileged, narrow concern with sexism but – and this is where our Sisters strand rel ects some fantastically positive trends – it is a broad movement that now welcomes much more diverse voices. There’s a more robust awareness of the way sexism is closely interconnected with
Clockwise from below: Time for Ilhan; Silvana; still and animation from Naila and the Uprising ‘Inspiring and empowering audiences is still very much at the core of our ambitions’
1 Sep–31 Oct 2018 THE LIST 27