Class 3: The Role of Women in Resistance
The Role of Women in Resistance
Palestinian women have played an essential and assertive role in the resistance against the Zionist enemy, demonstrating incredible steadfastness, perseverance, and ingenuity. This lesson explores the multifaceted contributions of women to the Palestinian struggle, highlighting their leadership in both historical and contemporary contexts.
Tarweedeh During
British Colonial Rule
During the British colonial period (1923-1948), Palestinian women developed tarweedeh, an encoded art form used to deliver encrypted messages of resistance. This was especially significant during the Great Palestinian Revolt of 1936-1939, when many Palestinian men were imprisoned for speaking against British rule.
Women, whose male relatives were wrongfully imprisoned, used tarweedeh to secretly transmit instructions for liberation. By inverting letters, inserting the letter "L" (“lam” in Arabic), and using symbolism and analogy, they transformed messages into a code that occupiers could not decipher.
Women walked outside prison walls, singing these encoded messages that sounded like folk songs to the occupiers but were crucial for organizing resistance.
Northen is the wind of home, northern
To the north, their door open
Tonight I will send a message with the northern wind
It will look for the loved ones and reach them
Our exile has lasted too long and we miss them
O’bird, go to the loved ones and tell them
tell them and look for those related to them
and greet my beloved when you visit them
شمالي لالي يا هوالي لديرة شمالي لالي يا وريللوووو
شمالي يا هوا الديرة شمالي ع لالي للبواب
هولولم تفتح شمالي لالي يا رويللووو
على اللي بوابهم تفتح شمالي وانا ليليلبعث معلي لريح
الشمالي لالي يا رويللووو وانا الليله لبعث مع الريح الشمالي
Tarweedeh survived the Nakba in 1948, during which at least 700,000 Palestinians were violently expelled from their homes by Zionist militias and Israeli military forces.
These folk songs, along with traditional food, clothing, storytelling, poetry, and dance, continue to preserve Palestinian identity and heritage, defying a system of apartheid and genocide. Palestinian women have been at the forefront of these cultural preservation efforts, passing on traditions to resist erasure.
Sumud صُمُود
Palestinian women exemplify sumud (صُمُود) by maintaining their presence on the land and creating and nurturing life under harsh conditions. For women in the occupied territories, caring for children and performing domestic roles is an act of resistance against the Zionist regime's attempts to break their spirit. Despite facing extreme adversity, Palestinian women continue to embody and promote sumud, ensuring the continuity of their culture and the resilience of their people.
