When you see/hear the phrase “Palestinian youth” what are the first thoughts that come to your mind? The typical answer would be: a bunch of tired, angry, poor and miserable ‘rock throwers’ who claim their land was stolen from them, and who are continuously, but in vain, trying to get back. or anything related to this scene.
Here, you will encounter some facts that may or may not change the way you look at them, but will definitely have you thinking more about your answer next time.
A Different Point of View
Nowadays youth, have lived two periods of time, the bad and the worse. So it’s safe to say they know what the worst case scenarios are! They know all too well how their parents have struggled to provide their basic needs of living. They recognize the necessity of having something to eat at dinner, at all costs. So they learn to work hard from very early ages, in hopes of building a better future for their own children, with less struggles and obstacles. They try their best to make the next generation better than themselves. This makes their lives significantly harder, with them having to worry about ‘making the world a better place’, which eventually exhausts them and hence makes others see them as tired, grumpy, miserable….. etc.
What’s more is that many of the Palestinian youth today have witnessed horrors that would scar them for a lifetime, yet they stand tall, work hard and hold on to hope instead of wallowing in their despair. They strive to become better individuals to prove, to themselves and the whole world, that there is more to them than just being ‘rock throwing sand niggers’. Carrying this burden on their shoulders, one would assume, would make them pretty tired, but on the contrary, it only motivates them to do more. Despite all of their suffering, they’re still aiming for happiness.
On Education
Palestinian youth may complain a lot about their education, but it’s mostly for the right reasons. Not because they don’t like learning, but as a cry to improve Palestinian education that’s more focused on employment rather than creativity and individuality. Our youth believe it is time for change. They have a vision about what could be suitable for this day and age and what could improve the quality of their lives. Enjoying learning and benefiting from it is their #1 goal in life. They disobey to guide the country to its right way…. They ‘disobey’ to lead!
In A Nutshell
The life of Palestinian youth is centered around two major things, education and employment. Admittedly, that can be pretty boring, however, they always find ways to make it worthwhile. They are invested in improving and developing their own home. They also believe in having some space for themselves to create, inspire, affect and succeed. They spend every second of their leisure time to do something advantageous for all aspects.
Our youth is not defeated, weak nor compelled. We have the strength to create and build anything and everything even if with the lack of space and resources. The outer space is all in our hands. We Can and We Will Do It! The sky’s our the limit.
What is your take on the matter? Share your opinion in the comments below.
