Editorial Statement: Youth and their presence in change: Between the local and the transnational

• DOI: https://doi.org/10.13169/bethunivj.37.2020.0047
• Published date: 01 January 2020
• Date: 01 January 2020
• Pages: 47-52
• Author: Abeer Musleh

46 Bethlehem University Journal 37 (2020)

Contributors

Majed Abusalama

Doctoral Researcher, Space and Political Agency

Research Group, Palestine Research Group,

Tampere University, Finland.

majedgaza@gmail.com

Ferdoos Abed Rabo Al-

Issa

Assistant Professor, Department of Social Sciences,

Bethlehem University, Bethlehem, Palestine.

falissa@bethlehem.edu

Ana Margarida Esteves

Research Fellow, Centro de Estudos Internacionais

(CEI), Instituto Universitário de Lisboa (ISCTE-

IUL), Lisboa, Portugal.

anamargarida.esteves@gmail.com

Aide Esu

Associate Professor, Department of Social Sciences

and Institutions, Faculty of Political Science at the

University of Cagliari, Cagliari, Sardinia, Italy.

esu@unica.it

Jamil Hilal

Lecturer in sociology and independent researcher,

Ramallah, Palestine.

jamil.hilal@gmail.com

Abeer Musleh

Assistant Professor, Department of Social Sciences,

Bethlehem University, Bethlehem, Palestine.

abeerm@bethlehem.edu

47

Bethlehem University Journal 37 (2020)

Editorial Statement

Youth and their presence in change: Between the local and the

transnational

Abeer Musleh (Guest editor)

Few months have passed since the Beirut Port explosion. Despite the great

destruction that we have witnessed, a particular scene that spread like wildre on

social media the day after the explosion attracted my attention. The scene showed

Lebanese youth armed with brooms, shovels, and masks clearing the city from

the debris and rubble. This scene is quite similar to the scene of Palestinian youth

in Jerusalem sitting on the stairs leading to Damascus Gate (the main entrance to

the old City of Jerusalem). These young people belong to a group of Palestinian

youth activists who launched an initiative under the slogan, “We are not scared,”

to reassert Palestinian existence in the city through their massive presence outside

the gate. In that area, the Israeli Occupation authorities have erected watchtowers

to monitor the movement of Palestinians and to tighten their control over their

presence, by constantly searching and harassing the Palestinians in the vicinity

or those passing by. As such, the Palestinian Youth Initiative aimed to re-capture

the historical and cultural space of the people of Jerusalem in their homeland by

organizing simple daily activitieslike drinking coffee and tea in that location.

Both scenes reect the solid and resilient position of the youth, who are facing

serious challenges and have a strong sense of commitment to their homeland and

society.

These scenes demonstrate the determination and capability of the youth through

convergent community action. Such an initiative is characterized by voluntary

work and positive action, which reect the youth’s ability to bring about change

and afrm their determination to regain control over their place rather than

surrender to the feeling of helplessness. Similar scenes of youth as initiators are

rare in the literature of youth in general and particularly in reports issued around

the world about the reality of youth in the Arab region and globally. These reports