Memoryscapes, Archives, and Transnational Diasporic Solidarity: Armenian-Palestinian Interactions, Solidarities and Futures in Literature and Art

• In Event: Artistic Praxis, Insurgent Futures, and SWANA Diasporic Archives

Abstract

In this presentation, I explore the interactions and solidarities between transnational Armenian and Palestinian creative communities as depicted in their literary and artistic works, applying the theoretical frameworks of Allan H. Pasco, Jennifer Cole, and others to define these texts and artifacts as both historical archives and memoryscapes. I draw from the SWANA (Southwest Asian and North African) Studies scholarship of Louise Cainkar, Pauline Homsi Vinson, and Amira Jarmakani, as well as the theories of Amahl Bishara and Carol W.N. Fadda, to analyze texts such as Najwan Darwish’s Nothing More to Lose, Joumana Haddad's The Book of Queens, and a transcribed recording of Who Remembers? Armenian Palestinian Solidarities, a poetry reading co-hosted by Armenian-American and Arab/Palestinian-American organizations. This analysis explores how these works envision decolonial and anti-imperial futures and intersectional and inclusive futures. I demonstrate how these texts and artifacts not only reflect but also actively contribute to envisioning opportunities for solidarity, coalition-building, and transformative knowledge production arising from these creative expressions.

Author

• Layla A Goushey