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“The Land is Talking to Me”: An interview with Jamal Juma’ on meanings of land, decolonization, resistance, and solidarity from Palestine

In this interview with Jamal Juma’, a coordinator for the Stop the Wall campaign[1] in 2002 and leader in grassroots organizing against the Wall, the concept of land sovereignty in Palestine is richly described. Through the story of Abu Nidal, he tells the history of Palestine and its attachment to the land. For the Zionist settler colonial project, confiscating Palestinian land is essential along with erasing Palestinian history tied to the land through building settlements and separation walls. Abu Nidal resists an Israeli bulldozer intending to demolish a Palestinian home, and he states that the land is talking to him because he belongs to the lands and understands its language. Palestinian resistance is often rooted sabr ( الصبر ), or patience, and the continuous sacrifices to keep their land, which represents their sovereignty.

Desai, Chandni. ““The Land is Talking to Me”: An interview with Jamal Juma’ on meanings of land, decolonization, resistance, and solidarity from Palestine”. Decolonization: Indigeneity, Education & Society 6, no. 1 (2017): 120-9.
 
[1] “The Stop the Wall coordination office works to ensure national networking, research and international outreach. The immediate goals of the Stop the Wall campaign have been sanctioned by the decision of the International Court of Justice on the legal consequences of the construction of the Wall (July 9 2004) and are: 1. The immediate cessation of the building of the Wall. 2. The dismantling of all parts of the Wall and its related zones already built. 3. The return of lands confiscated for the path of the Wall.  4. The compensation of damages and lost income due to the destruction of land and property in addition to the restitution of land.” – from author bio in interview

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