Palestinian Culture Day takes place on 14 October, and celebrates the rich cultural history of Palestine.
Leeds University Union (LUU) will be honouring this day, alongside your Student Exec, with a host of different activities and fundraisers taking place.
Supporting students is our goal, and therefore we will be fundraising for our University of Leeds course offer holders in Gaza.
11:00AM – 3:00PM: We will be hosting a Palestinian Culture Day event in the Marquee outside of LUU.
There will be a multitude of our Clubs and Societies present, namely our cultural societies. These stalls will be mostly educational, helping our students listen to and appreciate Palestinian stories, cultures and arts. There will also be fundraising aspects to this event, with all profits donated to our offer holders in Gaza.
7:30pm onwards: Hands-on evening events in the Pyramid Theatre.
This event begins with Yahya Alhamarna, a student from Gaza, launching their poetry collection ‘My Voice Cannot Be Bombed’. The collection captures the spirit and struggles of people in Gaza right now, and the poet will be speaking at the event over a video call. This is an incredible opportunity to listen to and understand the Palestinian voice. Attending this event, or even purchasing this book, will contribute to vital fundraising for the people of Palestine.
This book can also be borrowed from the Liberation hub, located on floor 1 of LUU.
Following this, we’ll continue with a talk from the English Society, exploring the role of Palestinian literature in the study of resistance and identity. This is incredibly important to listen to and understand, as Palestinian arts is something that all people can, accessibly, interact with.
9:00pm: A screening of the short film ‘Exception’, presented in collaboration with Leeds Palestinian Film Festival.
The tickets available for this entire event are ‘pay what you feel’ to remove cost barriers for those who need it, but we recommend a donation of at least £5 for the University Gazan Scholarship Fund.
From October 1 to November 30, our LUU outlets will have the option to donate money to Medical Aid for Palestinians with every purchase. This will only be a small amount, but would make such a huge difference in the long run.
With warm company and the opportunity to engage with Palestinian history and creativity, we hope you’ll join us in celebrating the enduring resilience of Palestinian arts in these deeply harrowing times. We urge you to get your tickets, contribute to fundraising and stay informed.
Blog by P.B. Helbest
A Statement From Your Student Executive
