Belfast opens its arms to Palestine
It’s the last week before three girls and their teacher from Gaza fly to Belfast to meet 2 girls and their teacher from the Czech Republic. What’s happening in Belfast, you might ask? But only if you haven’t read our blogs and Facebook and Twitter posts or if you didn’t watch the prize giving ceremony of our Annual Lockdown Theatre competition.
What’s happening is that a remote play originally written and performed by 5 teenage boys in Askar UNRWA Boys school in Nablus which became a play performed by 5 teenage girls from 2 different countries during lockdown is about to become a play performed by tens of teenagers in St Louise’s Comprehensive school on the Falls Road in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Sounds simple, right?
No, you’re right - it doesn’t, and it isn’t. Passports. Visas. Exit permits. Travel insurance. Accommodation. Food. Cultural differences. Refundable flights? Last minute changes. Fundraising. Hopes. Nerves. Itineraries. Internet connections. Just to give you an idea.
But through it all, 5 girls with belief in themselves and their power to change things. Girls who want to travel and meet their peers around the world, just like kids everywhere, irrespective of where they come from. Girls who have performed a play about the world as it is today, and how much better they could make it given half the chance.
They’re teenagers who are excited and happy and on the verge of having one of the most unforgettable experiences of their lives and they’re bringing an important message for us. So, we’d like to say a huge thanks to all the people who are helping to make it happen and opening the doors so often closed to young people in Palestine - not least the 73 donors who’ve contributed to the crowdfunding campaign, and the people of Belfast who are extending the warmest of welcomes.
Words of wisdom from students at Beit Hanoun UNRWA Prep A Girls’ School - UN Day of Peace 2021
Beit Hanoun UNRWA Prep A Girls’ School, Gaza
St. Louise’s Comprehensive School, Belfast