At a time of hopes dimming for the creation of a Palestinian state, the building of a Palestinian museum shows that this great people are looking to hold onto a past they have, as opposed to a future that is very uncertain. The museum is not a step in the Palestinian quest for statehood, but will tell the diverse stories of Palestinians living on their land and the millions who live in exile, which, by extension, explains why Palestinians clamor for a home of their own. Palestinians have about 30 museums in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem but nothing on the scale of the new project. Altogether, the $15 million museum covering 9,000 sq. m will take 12 years to build. It is being overseen by the Welfare Association, a Palestinian aid and development group supported by philanthropists who have close ties to the governing Palestinian Authority, which gave the museum the green light. Although the museum covers 200 years of history — from the Turkish-based Ottoman Empire through the British mandate over Palestine — its marquee corner is the birth of the modern state of Israel in 1948, and the displacement of some 700,000 Palestinians. The trauma of this historic mass dislocation is fittingly the reason why the museum is being built; to mark the anniversary of the Nakba, or catastrophe, in which hundreds of thousands of Palestinians either fled or were driven from their homes during the war surrounding Israel's founding. The narration will then continue with the history of Palestinians abroad as well as their living conditions in the Gaza Strip, West Bank and East Jerusalem under Israeli control. That daily life of Palestinians — which includes killings, injuries, settlement expansion on their land, homes that are demolished, olive trees that are set afire, prisoners who are detained without trial, barriers, checkpoints, and permits — has created a need for the whole world to know the conditions of the Palestinian existence. There is an obvious difficulty of connecting between Palestinians. Israeli control over Palestinian lands made Palestinians more disconnected from each other. The association is difficult between Palestinians in Israel; Palestinians in Jerusalem; refugees; Palestinians in the West Bank; and Palestinians in exile. Palestinian fragmentation is thus huge. Of the total Palestinian population worldwide, estimated at between nine to 11 million people, roughly half live outside of their homeland. Although the majority of Palestinians living abroad are in the Middle East, there are surprisingly 500,000 in far away Chile, making it the largest Palestinian community outside the Arab world and also underscores the vast gap between Palestinians. The museum will be built in the town of Birzeit, near Ramallah, as the town hosts one of the most prominent Palestinian universities. Education and learning about the history and legacy of the Palestinian people should start with the young who know their history books by heart but did not experience the ordeals their grand, grandparents went through. The museum will tell the stories of the aging generation of Palestinians who endured the 1948 displacement. It should be a source of inspiration, a way of teaching young Palestinians about their heritage. Some of the Palestinians living in exile are third-generation and many have little connection to Palestine, a fact the museum hopes to change. With a future so unsure, at least the Palestinians have a past to cherish and hold onto, a past like no one else.
