Monday, April 30 ~ Elie Saikaly

In the U.S., most people’s mental image of Bethlehem comes from the Christmas cards and carols we grew up with. We imagine a pastoral scene with animals and straw, Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus with maybe some approaching wise men in the background. Perhaps you knew that there is now a concrete wall that has been put up surrounding Bethlehem.

Walking along the Wall

Today, we walked along the wall. The wall is twenty some feet tall and topped with barbed wire  angled toward the Palestinian side. The wall is part of a vast system of walls that separates Israel from Palestinian areas. Israel calls it a separation wall. The Palestinians call it the apartheid wall. Israel says it is for security. Palestinians say it is an excuse to annex Palestinian land and continue the occupation of its people.

We start  our walk on a hill just below the checkpoint and continue to walk downhill. Immediately, you are struck by the immensity of it. It it’s the kind of structure you expect to find surrounding a prison. On the Israeli facing side, which you would only see from the other side of the check point, the concrete has decorative moldings as if enclosing a gated community. On the Palestinian facing side, the gray concrete is unadorned.

Angels work on the Palestinian side

Yet most of the wall stretching for blocks is covered with graffiti art. Some of the art is now world famous. There are line drawings, elaborate coloured paintings, pictures, and posters. The messages grab your attention and summon your emotions–despair, hope, longing, defiance, love. There is a series of wall posters called “The Wall Museum.” The posters recount true stories written by Palestinian youth about suffering and oppression as well as resilience, inner strength and cultural identity. A painting, which has become iconic, depicts a dove wearing a flak jacket. There are political cartoons, some aimed specifically at the American president. They demand justice, freedom, equality.

Banksy Wall Art

You can’t come away from the wall unaffected. It raises questions and challenges your conscience.