Start Date
4-30-2026 9:10 AM
End Date
4-30-2026 10:25 AM
Disciplines
History
Subjects
Middle East, Palestine, Cross-cultural studies
Abstract
Spurred by violence and persecution, countless groups across the Middle East have engaged in transnational migration across history. One such group, Palestinians, have embraced transnationalism as a cornerstone of their identity as a stateless nation. Beginning in the wake of the Crimean War, and later following the establishment of the state of Israel, many Palestinians immigrated to Chile’s capital, Santiago de Chile. There, they have engaged in cross-cultural interactions with Chileans in order to harness their economic, political, athletic, and artistic customs as unique forms of activism in the absence of proper diplomacy with any Palestinian state. While some Palestinian Chileans have sought elected office and engaged in organization through formal political parties, their engagement with the fight for Palestinian self-determination in the Middle East has been largely symbolic. Thus, the day-to-day resistance carried out by Palestinian Chileans through such cross-cultural interactions merits examination as a framework for new forms of global political advocacy. Additionally, it encourages individuals who are less familiar with the issue to reject mainstream, reductive portrayals of Palestinians by providing tangible examples of their agency, adaptability, and thriving diaspora around the world.
Creative Commons License or Rights Statement
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Included in
Integration as Resistance: How Palestinian Chileans Have Acted as Transnational Activists from 1870-2008
Spurred by violence and persecution, countless groups across the Middle East have engaged in transnational migration across history. One such group, Palestinians, have embraced transnationalism as a cornerstone of their identity as a stateless nation. Beginning in the wake of the Crimean War, and later following the establishment of the state of Israel, many Palestinians immigrated to Chile’s capital, Santiago de Chile. There, they have engaged in cross-cultural interactions with Chileans in order to harness their economic, political, athletic, and artistic customs as unique forms of activism in the absence of proper diplomacy with any Palestinian state. While some Palestinian Chileans have sought elected office and engaged in organization through formal political parties, their engagement with the fight for Palestinian self-determination in the Middle East has been largely symbolic. Thus, the day-to-day resistance carried out by Palestinian Chileans through such cross-cultural interactions merits examination as a framework for new forms of global political advocacy. Additionally, it encourages individuals who are less familiar with the issue to reject mainstream, reductive portrayals of Palestinians by providing tangible examples of their agency, adaptability, and thriving diaspora around the world.