Red, black, green and white painted the scene at Club SAW on Nov. 4, as Palestinian protestors came together for an afternoon of poster making.
Ahead of the 100K March for Gaza later that day, local arts organizations Club SAW and Debaser invited Ottawa’s arts community to create posters and banners in solidarity with the Palestinian Youth Movement.
The 100K March for Gaza took place in dozens of Canadian cities to demand a ceasefire. Marchers also called on the Canadian government to condemn the bombings of schools, hospitals and refugee camps, and the killing of civilians and journalists by Israel’s military.
As of Nov. 6, more than 10,000 Palestinians have been killed across Gaza over the span of a month. As a result of a blockade established by the Israeli government on Oct. 9, limited humanitarian aid has been provided.
Amanda Lowe Warnakulasuriya, a multidisciplinary artist and one of the event organizers, said any artist with a voice can use their talents to facilitate conversations about social and political movements.
“It’s such a privilege to be able to communicate with your art, and that’s a heavy weight to carry,” Lowe Warnakulasuriya said. “You need to use it.”
Debaser founder and director Rachel Weldon said she was motivated to put the poster making event together after local artists approached her, looking to bridge art and activism together to support the Palestinian movement.
Weldon said she believes the Ottawa arts and culture scene can support Palestinian artists who are being censored for their ideals.
“I hope that we show the size of the movement and our power [and strength] in numbers,” Weldon said. ”As artists, we can use the skills that we have to support the movement, which are storytelling and visual communication.”
Mars Ramlogan, one of many community organizers, is a local singer-songwriter who graduated from Carleton University with a bachelor’s of social work in 2020. They currently work as a DJ and multidisciplinary artist under the stage name DJ Trinidaddy.
Ramlogan said art is inherently political and often used as a form of resistance.
“In history, art has always been a part of really important movements to get the message across,” Ramlogan said. “I think art is inherently entwined with resistance and is inherently political.”
Ramlogan said many local artists are passionate about the Free Palestine movement.
“The Ottawa arts community may be small but it’s filled with a lot of people that deeply care about people that exist in our community,” Ramlogan said.
Many artists incorporated the Palestinian flag and keffiyeh, the traditional scarf, into their posters. Others chose to include slices of watermelon, a symbol that first became associated with Palestinian resistance after the Israeli government made displaying the flag a criminal offence.
Rachel Lim, a youth activist and fourth-year human rights student at the University of Ottawa, chose to combine her Malaysian background and Palestinian advocacy in one powerful piece.
After Malaysia took a pro-Palestine position the United States urged Malaysia to change its stance. Lim’s poster and artistic decisions are a direct response to the United States, encouraging Malaysian-Palestinian solidarity.
Lim said she decided to keep her poster’s message simple, drawing focus on the unity between Malaysia and Palestine through their national animal symbols. This included the Malayan tiger and Palestine’s sunbird, both resting on their respective flags.
“I think art is inherently activism,” Lim said. “It’s letting people put their natural work, their self and their soul into their work [to] convey their feelings the best.”
Lim said she has attended multiple marches for the Palestinian movement and hopes to see more voices, higher numbers and “the streets of Ottawa flooded again.”
“It’s very important that people understand the importance of standing in solidarity with the Palestinians,” Lim said. “It’s proving that we understand what [it takes for Palestinians] to continuously demand change and justice, including their liberation.”
Featured image by Sadeen Mohsen/the Charlatan.
