What’s the recipe for nuanced attention to complex issues like Israel/Palestine? For two Harvard Divinity School students (one who graduated last spring), it’s a strategy of consistent content on a newly launched TikTok account that surpassed half a million views in its first two weeks.
“How can we make it so that when people hear ‘Palestine’ they know, yes, tragic things are happening but there’s also so much joy in this community?” asks Ciara Moezidis, master of theological studies (MTS) ‘24 and Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy student. “Hospitality, generosity, care for one another and for those who visit [Palestine]… it’s hard to even grasp. We’re trying to capture that disorientation of joy and tragedy of what it’s like to visit and what it’s like to be Palestinian.”
Ciara Moezidis and Sami Manausa, MTS ’22 spent the 2021-22 academic year immersed in the study of peace and violence through exploring the case study of Israel/Palestine. Ciara sat in on Prof. Diane L. Moore’s class as an undergraduate sophomore as part of the Diversity and Explorations (DivEx) program. Once enrolled at HDS, “There was nothing I wouldn’t do to be in this class,” she said about her determination to join the Religion, Conflict, and Peace Initiative (RCPI) experiential course, “Learning in Context: Narratives of Displacement and Belonging in Israel/Palestine.” The course includes a two-week trip to the region led by Religion and Public Life faculty and staff.
“It’s a cliché but the class is life-changing. I don’t think there’s a single person who went who wasn’t profoundly impacted by the trip. It really is an unprecedented privilege.” Sami says. Ciara adds, “It’s an experience you really can’t get anywhere else. You’re going somewhere that so many people can’t go to. It’s truly a humbling experience to meet so many people, to be on the ground.” Both Ciara and Sami extended their time in the region through sponsored eight-week internships over the summer.
The course requirements culminate in a public-facing project. Ciara experimented with a couple of Instagram Reels, so Sami pitched the idea of a joint TikTok account. @TwoGalsinPal is their shared platform to amplify the sites, sounds, and stories of their time learning about the complexities of life in Israel/Palestine.
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Before launching the account, Sami consulted with her younger brother who has had success on the platform. His advice led the two HDS students to plan roughly five posts a day for the first two weeks. Since September 1st, Ciara and Sami have posted 75 times and surpassed over 715,000 views with over 53,000 likes on their content. Sami remarks that, “It’s Palestine. We have endless ideas for videos.”
The diverse content spans conversations with local shop owners, the history of and recent events in Israel/Palestine, related pop culture, travel posts featuring street food and sweeping views of Ramallah, Haifa, Bethlehem, and the Dead Sea.
Like many creators on TikTok, success often comes with a cost. Sami and Ciara mentioned they have dealt with their fair share of criticism and trolls on their posts. However, stories of unexpected connection have made the effort worth it. One person recognized a childhood friend now vending at a market in Ramallah. Another commented that her grandpa was featured in one of their posts.
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Sami admitted to technical challenges including accidentally dropping her phone down an elevator shaft one week after launching the account. “I could hear it bouncing down all twelve floors!” she says with a laugh. (Don’t worry, she didn’t lose footage!)
Sami and Ciara agreed that leveraging their privilege to share Palestinian footage and stories was a clear request from the locals they met and befriended.
“Everyone kind of resoundingly told us, please just be a messenger, go back and tell, especially people in the U.S. what you’re seen and experienced here. We try to always anchor all of our content to that concept,” Sami says.
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“We want to emphasize that two girls from Harvard are not the final word on this issue. We’re not hopping on this bandwagon to use the cause to become well-known activists,” notes Ciara. “We, as Americans, are complicit in these human rights violations. It’s important for Americans to not be scared to speak out. I focus my studies on ethno-religious persecution and human rights violations. We care about a lot of groups including Hazaras, Baha’is, Uyghyrs, and the Rohingya. Human rights shouldn’t be political.”
When asked about plans for the future of the account Ciara shared, “We’re taking it in stride, getting feedback and seeing how it goes. We’d like to bring stories of the Palestinian diaspora in Boston and Chicago. Our plans are to find more ways to engage Americans. It can be frustrating that more people will see a post about Palestinian-American Bella Hadid when on the same day I posted about a refugee camp being teargassed that got one fifth of the views. We’re trying to figure out the recipe for why. But anything to get them to the page is what we’re trying to do.”
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Editor’s note: The application for the 2022-23 course, “Learning in Context: Narratives of Displacement and Belonging” are currently closed. The course is open to any enrolled Harvard graduate student.
A final info session for Harvard graduate students will be held on Friday, September 23rd from noon-1pm. Register here: tinyurl.com/RPLnarrativescourse.
by Erin Naomi Burrows