'Stitching is resisting': How Edmonton's Palestinian community gains strength from its heritage

Every stitch is meditative. 

That's how Manal Kalousa, a Canada Palestine Cultural Association board member, describes the traditional embroidery art form known as tatreez. 

The hand-sewn practice is centuries old and has been passed down through the generations, according to the Tatreez Institute, a Palestinian-led educational arts initiative focused on the preservation, documentation and research of textiles in Southwest Asia and North Africa. 

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization recognized the art of Palestinian embroidery as an important expression of cultural heritage in 2021. 

"This project is what we hope is going to be our peace ambassador to the world," said Kalousa. She's the team lead for the Threads of Diaspora, a project that started as a means to teach tatreez to Edmontonians but has since grown to be a way to share Palestinian culture. 

"Which will show how we can all be connected together. And [the name] Threads of Diaspora because we, as Palestinians, we are spread around the world," Kalousa said. 

Kalousa said she was taught the craft by her mother, who learned from Kalousa's grandmother. 

"It runs in our DNA," she said in an interview, describing stitching as sacred. 

"When you're stitching, I'm connecting to my grand-grand-grand-grandmother ... to all those women in my heritage, and it's the same for every Palestinian woman, and I think even other cultures too." 

Power from a feminine art form

Tatreez can be seen in various items like decorations and clothing and is most commonly used to embellish dresses known as thobes. The designs are inspired by everyday life and feature depictions of nature like trees, flowers and birds. 

For women, choosing colours and designs would communicate regional identity and marital and economic status.

The designs have deep cultural and historical significance, according to designer and association member Elian Aboudi.

"You have a wider library of tatreez designs that everybody can share, and it was the language of resistance," Aboudi said. 

"We want our right to exist with dignity, with humanity ... stitching is resisting and resisting is existing."

Aboudi said designs changed following events in 1948, which resulted in the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people who fled or were forced from their homes during the fighting surrounding Israel's creation.

Palestinians refer to the time in history as the Nakba, the Arabic word for catastrophe.

Making sense of tragedy 

The Israeli military said Sunday it had expanded its ground operations to every part of Gaza and ordered more evacuations in the crowded south, followed by heavy bombardment.

Palestinians in the Gaza Strip said they were running out of places to go in the sealed-off territory that borders Israel and Egypt. 

The United Nations estimates that 1.8 million Gazans have been displaced. 

Kalousa, who is from Gaza and has friends and family there, said the loss has been profoundly painful as she faces the killing of several family members ranging from toddlers to the elderly. 

"When you feel like the whole world rejects you, this art connects you to your roots and you feel like you are connected to your people too," she said.

"You are still here."

Randa Alhijawi, association president, said the project has been therapeutic as multiple board members have lost friends and family during Israeli ground operations and bombardment in Gaza. 

"This is really like saving our heritage, and our tatreez is also part of the resistance," Alhijawi said. 

"We are a rich culture. We have a rich history. And we've been there for years and years. And this is part of our resistance and keeping our identity, it's important to our kids too." 

Passing the torch to future generations

Eighteen-year-old Jude Alhijawi said she had found the experience of learning tatreez vital in reclaiming her roots as she learned the craft from other association members. 

Alhijawi, who is Randa's daughter, said it's hard to be Palestinian. 

"Just seeing your culture and seeing your heritage is something so rare being Palestinian because, honestly, growing up, I never had that," she said. 

"Now that I feel the freedom to show who I am and show my heritage. It's new to me, and it's honestly the most amazing feeling."

The Canada Palestine Cultural Association will host an evening open house on Dec. 14 for anyone interested in learning the art form of tatreez.