Engaging Practices for Raising Awareness to (Mis/Dis-)Representation of Indigenous Languages in Multilingual Societies

• In Event: Exploring Multiple Languages in Emancipatory Praxis

Abstract

Although Arabic is the native language of fifth of the indigenous Palestinian- Israeli population, its representation in the Israeli linguistic landscape (LL) is problematic. This study invited Palestinian-Israeli students to reflect on such linguistic reality through the participatory photography tool “PhotoVoice.” Students captured photos of LLs, wrote commentaries voicing their reflections, and shared their projects. Content analysis of students’ “PhotoVoices” revealed strong feelings of negligence, racism, (intended) disrespect, and otherness. Sample projects shared with the conference audience shed light on students’ affective perceptions as local inhabitants toward the representation of their language and demands for change. Grounded in critical pedagogies, the study demonstrates the potential of the innovative tool PhotoVoice in raising awareness to representation of minoritized languages in LLs.

Author

• Rawia Hayik, Israel Institute