In episode four, Palestinian storyteller Sarah Abu-Sharar joins us for our third annual Mouth Open Story Jump Out episode. Through Palestinian folktales and stories of her father, she reflects on the meaning and power of stories within Palestinian resilience, recuperation and resistance.
Reflection on her journey into storytelling, Abu-Sharar says:
“When I started storytelling, it had to be for Palestine because it was reclaiming my identity. It was a way of saying, the Occupation might have deprived me of my land, of my culture, but I will resist by telling our stories.”
About today’s guest:
Sarah Abu-Sharar comes from a long line of storytellers on her paternal side. She tells stories to both adults and children. Abu-Sharar has told stories both nationally and internationally at festivals in Canada, Italy, Croatia, Bosnia, Tunisia, Morocco and the United Arab Emirates. Because Abu-Sharar grew up in several countries she tells stories from all over the world with the focus on Palestinian and Croatian stories where her roots lie. Her favourite stories are ones that promote social change. She has also used stories in a therapeutic way with children in refugee camps and refugee children in Toronto, as part of their therapy. She works at the Parent Child Mother Goose Program using traditional storytelling to encourage parent child bonding. Abu-Sharar belongs to a collective called “Musical Story Studio” where stories and music are combined. She tells stories so that she may go deep inside of the tales and find herself in far away magical places that she remembers, from long, long ago.
Transcript of this episode can be accessed at georgebrown.ca/TommyDouglasInstitute or here.
Image: Sarah Abu-Sharar / Used with permission.
Music: Ang Kahora. Lynne, Bjorn. Rights Purchased.
Intro Voices: Ashley Booth (Podcast Announcer); Bob Luker (Tommy)
Courage My Friends Podcast Organizing Committee: Chandra Budhu, Ashley Booth, Resh Budhu.
Produced by: Resh Budhu, Tommy Douglas Institute and Breanne Doyle, rabble.ca.
Host: Resh Budhu.
