Revolution Must Mean Life
May 4 - May 31st
By Maysam Ghani, in collaboration with Nasim Asgari and Labour4Palestine.
Tracing the “crevice between hope and despair”, a space that Palestinians know all too well, Revolution Must Mean Life presents a glimpse into the intersections of the labour movement and the Palestinian liberation movement. With poetry at its core, the project amplifies a collective call to action from Labour For Palestine that transcends BDS resolutions and highlights the central role of workers’ struggles in the resistance against the Zionist regime. This work was envisioned and supported through a series of interviews with organizers from Labour for Palestine on Turtle Island and organizers on the ground in Palestine, situated in Al Khalil, Nablus, Qalqilya, and Ramallah.
The violent attacks on Palestinians throughout 2021 exposed realities of settler colonialism, apartheid and occupation in ways the world could no longer shy away from. Taking the lead from Palestinians on the ground, dockworkers to labour unionists mobilized en masse against the ongoing oppressive systems of occupation, ethnic cleansing, and land theft. Revolution Must Mean Life explores the power of the people and all the ways that they create cracks, breaks and fissures within an oppressive system.
This project was developed through Mayworks’ Labour Arts Catalyst and is co-presented with Whippersnapper Gallery and Trinity Square Video
Revolution Must Mean Life Exhibition:
May 4th to May 31st at Whippersnapper Gallery (storefront window, available to view from outside 24/7)
Poetry reading with Maysam Ghani:
Friday May 6th at the Living Voice: An evening of labour arts poetry, United Steelworkers Hall, 7pm; and Saturday May 28th at the Mayworks Festival Closing Celebration Dentonia Park, 1PM
Gallery visit with Maysam Ghani:
Sunday May 22nd, 2-4PM at Whippersnapper Gallery. Visitors are invited to drop by Whippersnapper Gallery, meet artist Maysam Ghani and make or bring a poster relating to Palestinian liberation that will later be added to the exhibition walls.
Bio
Maysam Ghani is a Muslim settler with Palestinian and Syrian roots, who was born and raised in Tkaronto (Toronto). Maysam is an aspiring educator, poet, and organizer with the Palestinian Youth Movement (Toronto Chapter) where she is committed to seeking collective liberation. In her work, she has explored questions of settler colonialism, maternal lineages, food histories, and more. She is grounded in her community and seeks to nurture healing, justice, and generosity in her organizing. She has published pieces in the academic journal New Sociology: Journal of Critical Praxis (2020), in addition to the Queen’s Journal of Indigenous Studies (2019), Ghassan Kanafani Resistance Arts Scholarship Anthology (2019), and Collective Reflections (2018). She was awarded 2nd place for the 2020 Ghassan Kanafani Resistance Arts Anthology. She was a featured panelist at the international Palestine Writes Festival, speaking on a panel entitled “Architects of Our Narrative” for emerging Palestinian writers. She was a featured poet at the Canadian Spoken Word Festival in 2019 and has performed poetry in two productions of Down There. Catch her reciting poems at your local Palestine solidarity action!
