Three Cities Against the Wall by Melissa Jameson

I am on the NY organizing committee of a project called "Three Cities Against the Wall," a group project among artists in Ramallah, Palestine; Tel Aviv, Israel; and New York City, focusing on the Separation Wall under construction by Israel in the Occupied Territories of Palestine. The exhibition will be held simultaneously in Ramallah, Tel Aviv, and New York, in November 2005. Although I come from a peace and justice background and am a poet, not an artist, I love the combination of art and politics, and the politics behind the show appealed to my anarcho-pacifist self. So when the friend who came up with the idea asked me to be part of the initial organizing group over a year ago, I said yes.

First of all, the show in NYC is based at ABC No Rio, an art collective on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, which is also home to Food Not Bombs, Books thru Bars, and several other wonderful ventures, including of course, artistic ones, that embody the d.i.y. aesthetic. In addition, ABC is located in what was the historic Jewish ghetto of NYC -- what better place to demonstrate opposition to a policy that oppresses so miserably? Secondly, we are working with people in Tel Aviv who are actively working against the policies of the State, the people in Ramallah, and also people in the U.S. who are opposed to the policies of our government as well. One of the aims of the show is to let people know that there is opposition to the Wall in Israel as well as New York. We want to lay the foundation for building a multicultural community of artists across borders, and demonstrate through combined effort oppostion to the idea that there must be a permanent separation wall between cultures -- to my mind, this fits into the idea of working for justice and peace really well. In addition, the freedom of expression that underscores the work of nonviolence -- how can we arrive at a better way, a different way, if we can't have the conversation? -- is part and parcel of an art show. Whether it is because we are using a visual medium in a visual culture, or because this kind of endeavor transcends the artificially imposed barrier that is the State, I think the potential of a project such as this is enormous.

I read once that nonviolence often seems odd to people when put into practice because it can be incredibly simple and at the same time, is quite radical; it is often the fact that it is just different that makes it seem radical. Part of the idea of this show is to appreciate the coming together of cultures and the possibility of people living together in justice and peace.