At our December’s Farmers Market stall, we thought through symbols of protest and peace, and the power of collective action against injustice.
Taking the motif of an olive tree -  a universal symbol of peace as well as a symbol of Palestinian resilience against Israeli occupation - as inspiration, we collectively made a banner to take to the demonstration happening every Saturday in Aberdeen, in solidarity with Palestine. By adding a leaf to the tree, we continue to add our voices to the call for immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and the liberation of Palestine after a century of occupation by the UK and subsequently Israel.
The olive harvest takes place every October and November in Palestine, with around 80,000-100,000 families dependent on this for their livelihood. Olive farmers in the occupied West Bank require permits to access their land in areas of illegal Israeli settlements, and in the last month a strict lockdown has been enforced across the area. Farmers have been shot at, attacked and forcibly prevented from accessing their olive trees, which have often been growing and bearing fruit for hundreds of years. Settlers are laying claim to land by vandalising, burning and uprooting the trees, destroying the ancient tradition of the olive harvest along with the vital income this generates. Over the years, Deveron Projects has hosted and worked with artists and partners from all over the world. The projects created have linked Huntly with global experiences and issues, showing how we are interconnected with other people and places. Many artists have made artworks in support of global justice movements, including the liberation of Palestine from 75 years’ occupation by Israel. Like then, Deveron Projects stands with Palestine now. We believe that being pro-Palestine and against anti-Semitism go hand in hand, because all systems of oppression reinforce one another, and cannot be fought in isolation.