Talk: Living with Dignity

The ongoing genocide in Gaza is one of the greatest crises of our time, both on a political and a humanitarian level. Images of dead people, destroyed homes and crying children circulate on social media. People affected by such cruel acts are also robbed of their former identity. Where they were once doctors, musicians, entrepreneurs and hairdressers, they are now seen through one lens, all over the world: As victims. The unending stream pictures don’t show us everyone who works to help, educate, heal and report what is happening. But civil and cultural life, environments for art and music, still exist. And much of the spirit required to stand up, comes from a shared identity. What happens to the idea of ​​a people when all one sees are images of destruction and the dead? What characterizes the music and art environments in Palestine and why is it important that we get to know their work, right now?

In collaboration with the Palestine Committee in Norway, we have invited a panel that provides perspectives on these issues. The discussion will be moderated by Line Khateeb from the Palestine Committee, and two short films made by filmmakers in Gaza will also be shown; "NIGHT" by Ahmad Saleh and "Grandmother wore us out" by Haneen Koraz, in addition to two short films made by Palestinian children.

At the end of the conversation, rapper Mohammed Elsusi from Gaza performs. He will soon release his album "Living with Dignity" – a title that has inspired this panel.  

Line Khateeb is the head of the Palestine Committee in Norway, a Norwegian and Palestinian with a master's degree in Middle Eastern studies from UiO. She has previously been an advisor to Norwegian People's Aid and the Norwegian Organization for Asylum Seekers (NOAS).

Mats Grorud is an animation film director and screenwriter. Debuted in 2018 with his first full-length animated film “Tårnet”/ “The Tower”). Grorud has in recent years worked on the development of a full-length animation project: DELTA, produced by Mikrofilm, Norway, and is based on research in the Niger Delta, southern Nigeria, spring 2022. He is also active in the animation collective Palestina Animada and is behind Posters for Palestine together with Martin Lundel, Espen Friberg and Marie Payan.

Mohammed Elsusi is a rapper, video artist and producer from Gaza, currently living in Stavanger. At the age of 16, he began exploring sound engineering and music production, eventually founding the group Revolution Makers with his brother Osama. Elsusi grew up under siege in Gaza and developed his voice as a natural part of the resistance. He created music that dared to confront injustice, poverty and the realities of life under occupation. He defied political and economic restrictions, learning his craft in makeshift studios and a close network of creative artists from Gaza. In his music, rap mixes with Arabic melodies, traditional instrumentation and electronic elements, drawing inspiration from both Palestinian roots and global rap culture.

Rania Elias has dedicated her working life to promoting culture, freedom of speech and human rights in Palestine. She has been a researcher, author and an activist. Elias was the director of the Yabous Cultural Centre and the Jerusalem Festival in occupied Jerusalem from 1998 until she resigned at the end of 2022. She managed the renovation of "Yabous," from an abandoned old cinema, into the largest and most important cultural center in Jerusalem – despite all obstacles Palestinian organizations in Jerusalem face. She has also been acting director of the Bethlehem International Festival, as well as the administrative director of the RIWAQ Center for Architectural Conservation based in Ramallah. Elias has faced systematic persecution and restrictions because of her work. It has not stopped her.  

Carmel Alabbasi is an interdisciplinary artist whose practice spans photography, video, sound, experimental film, installation, and sculpture. With backgrounds in journalism and social anthropology, and a degree in fine arts, they have developed a dynamic, research-driven approach to their work. Their research investigates absence and disappearance, examining how spaces, bodies, and objects are entangled within the complex web of colonial and patriarchal heritage in Palestine. Through their work, they trace spectral imprints of places, identities, and memories lingering in the remnants of systemic erasure.