In 2019, MAP embarked on an exciting photography project with Palestinians living with disabilities in Gaza. The project supported people with disabilities to tell their own stories through photography, raising awareness locally and internationally of disability rights and the barriers to them in Gaza.
Click on the image below to see the photos the group took and learn about messages they sought to convey to the world through their pictures:
“I was born unable to express myself in words, but thanks to this project I can express myself by taking photos. I am truly happy that I got the chance to reflect my daily hardships and dreams through photos. I feel empowered. I finally feel heard.” - Ahmad Shareh
In the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt) people with disabilities face significant challenges to their rights. Disability continues to be stigmatised, with degrading terminology and attitudes common. Combined with many practical obstacles, this mindset makes it difficult for many people with disabilities to realise their right to full inclusion and participation in society. Living under prolonged occupation, blockade and closure also greatly exacerbates the difficulties that people with disabilities face.
MAP’s partners, the Nuseirat Rehabilitation and Social Training Association and the Social Developmental Forum, provide rights-based and digital training and support to people with disabilities in Gaza, enabling them to become advocates in their local community to bring about change and challenge public perceptions of disability. The photography project seeks to amplify their important work, connecting the experiences and voices of Palestinians living with disabilities to the outside world.
The participants describe the messages they want to share with the world through their photographs in a short video produced with the help of the Social Developmental Forum:
