“Where does my nation begin and end on my skin?”
This is one question asked by one of the members of Beyond Borders multimedia book club, a project by the UBC Middle Eastern Studies Student Association (MESSA) to deconstruct stereotypes about the region. On January 31, Beyond Borders gathered at the Global Lounge to watch music videos by change-makers in the Middle East.
This week’s theme, “Songs of Revolution,” echoed the mission of the club: to spotlight Middle Eastern people on their own terms and in their own voice. The club aims to cover themes of love, joy and humour but also discusses grief, loss and revolution.
The third meeting of Beyond Borders fuelled a conversation about revolution, resistance and national identity through music and media in the MENA region. The club screened three music videos: "El Kofeyye Arabeyye" by British Palestinian artist Shadia Mansour, "Baraye Azadi" by the Iranian artist Shervin Hajipur and "Mawtini" by Talia Lahoud from Lebanon. These screenings inspired emotional conversations and brought up questions and experiences of belonging, civil resistance and cultural solidarity.
The 12-year-old song "El Kofeyye Arabeyye" sparked an interest in the participants about the political unrest in the Middle East affecting the daily lives of citizens and the politicization of civil identities.
“Something that is just a part of your day-to-day reality, your language, something you wear can become so politicized,” said Abigaelle Normand, the MESSA marketing and design officer about the significance of the Palestinian scarf Keffiyeh in the culture.
During the meeting, Normand explained that the Keffiyeh, a checkered scarf traditionally worn by Palestinian farmers in rural areas, was seen as a symbol of rebellion during the Arab Revolt in the 1930s. When all ranks of men began wearing the Keffiyeh, it became a symbol of national identity and solidarity and became synonymous with the Palestinian culture.
First-time attendee and political science student Adam Steele paralleled the club’s vision.
“I have found watching music videos from other countries a great way to experience people speaking on their own terms rather than seeing them through a lens,” he said.
Beyond Borders hopes to take away the time commitment of a classic book club by involving no preparation for participants. MESSA president Ebba Hooft Toomey said, “We are trying to create an accessible event for students who don’t have the extra time to prepare for a classic book club style.”
A part of the ethos of MESSA through this book club is to break the Middle Eastern stereotypes. Abril M.S. Rivera, the Global Lounge Officer for MESSA, said, “The mainstream news in the Global North… has sold us a story about the Middle East and I like that with this club we get to reclaim and disrupt a lot of those narratives.”
Rivera came up with the idea of the book club on a plane after reading Khaled Hosseini’s A Thousand Splendid Suns. To combat the Western presumption of Middle Eastern cultures, the club aims to project a reflection of the modern Middle East. They want to showcase relevant and current concerns in the region through modern media and literature, according to Rivera.
“It is especially important in the context of being a Canadian university where a lot of the students are within the Western media cycle and education system … voices that might not necessarily be platformed get a chance to be heard and appreciated in all of their varieties,” said Toomey.
MESSA was established in July 2020 when UBC launched the Middle East Studies minor.
The Beyond Borders club has featured docuseries and poetry in the past but is still in a nascent stage with its first meeting held in October 2022. When asked about their plans for the future, Rivera said that the club would continue to debunk myths about the Middle East and connect with similar clubs.