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In Ramallah a group of young folk dancers is
anxiously awaiting the coming of summer when
they will travel to the United States to share their culture and
help Americans understand who they are and how they live.
The teens are members of the Al Raja Palestinian Folkloric Dance
Troupe. They will visit congregations and special events of the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), performing in
Chicago, Omaha, San Francisco, San Antonio and other cities.
Al Raja means 'hope." The dancers are Christian and Muslim teens
from the Evangelical Lutheran School of Hope in Ramallah. The school
is a ministry the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy
Land (ELCJHL).
Members of the dance troupe are eager to meet American youth and see
how they live. They have much to share with Americans about life in
Palestine.
One way these teens express their culture is through traditional
dance. They practice for hours each week. The Al-Raja Dance Troupe
is only about two years old, but many children in Palestine learn
the traditional “debka” dancing from an early age.
In 2004 the dancers went to Norway. Travel from the occupied
Palestinian lands is a challenge. Palestinians are not allowed to
fly out of Israel’s airport in Tel Aviv; they must travel to Amman,
Jordan, and fly from there. Crossing the border into Jordan can take
four to five hours.
Palestinians cannot leave home without a permit, so they will have
to get that permit before then can leave Ramallah and go 13 miles to
Jerusalem to apply for their visas.
In Norway the Palestinian students found a different world. “It’s a
whole different way of life! Freedom. They can just go out where
they want, when they want,” said one of the dancers.
The everyday freedom and mobility known to us in the United States
are only dreams for Palestinians. More than 400 road closures and
checkpoints keep them locked in small enclaves in the cities and
towns of the West Bank and Gaza.
Recently the dancers took a journey to Jericho, also in the West
Bank, and one of the few places the youth can go for a picnic outing
without the special permit. Najwa Krei, an advisor for the troupe,
said they were stopped three times and had to stand outside the bus
in the winter cold. It took over two hours to make the 25-mile trip.
The ELCA advocates dignity and justice for all people and peace and
reconciliation among the nations. The Al Raja dancers’ tour is part
of the church’s special strategy for engagement in Palestine and
Israel.
Voting members of the ELCA’s 2005 Churchwide Assembly urged
congregations to participate in the campaign, "Peace Not Walls:
Stand for Justice in the Holy Land," to build awareness and engage
in accompaniment and advocacy for "peace with justice" between
Israel and Palestine.
Images for download
Reflections along the Tour
by Marica Wright
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