Bonnie McRae, June 16, 2017

Reviving Star Street: Building a Better Future for the Local Community

The festival works to rehabilitate a specific section of the Old City, Star Street.

Star Street was once a thriving center of Palestinian trade, commerce, and culture — home to local artisan studios and tradesmen shops. In the past, Star Street welcomed and served many international travelers during their pilgrimage in the Holy Land, upon their visits to Jerusalem and Bethlehem — for, Star Street is historically regarded as the path by which Mary and Joseph walked towards the birthplace of Jesus.

However, due to the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories — and most especially due to the apartheid wall, built by the order of the Israeli government in 2002 — Star Street has lost nearly all of its status as a thriving cultural and commercial center of the Bethlehem community.

International visitors to Bethlehem no longer walk the traditional route to the Nativity Church via Star Street. This sad reality keeps international travelers to Bethlehem from interacting with local Palestinian culture, and from supporting the local Bethlehem economy.

Life Behind the Walls

Bethlehem is surrounded by the walls from all its sides. Diverse human beings, full of life and love and creativity, live behind those walls. Bet Lahem Live gathers people from near and far, to come and experience diverse culture and faith, in the name of peace. The festival shows the world that there are people living behind those walls, who are celebrating their culture, celebrating their identity, and celebrating life — all while calling for justice.

Due to the Bet Lahem Live Festival, we expect that, each year, of the 98 stores on Star Street that have closed down, 30% of them will re-open for the festival, and then 5% will remain open after the festival. 2014’s festival attracted investments to the street, including at least three cafes, a bookshop, Star Street Art Gallery, a farmers market, and more. When we work together, seemingly impossible things become possible.

An annual festival of creativity, faith, culture, and social justice

In addition to reviving the local economy, the festival invites artists, musicians, performers, and artisans from all over the world to showcase their talents. The festival also houses workshops and trainings on subjects including empowerment and social justice, leadership training, development of strategies for achieving peace and justice, and interfaith dialogue. This creates a unique exchange of knowledge, methodologies, creativity and expression.

Programs and activities that make up Bet Lahem Live:

• Musical Performances (from local and international artists)
• Cultural and artistic activities
• Nonviolence Workshops
• Faith Panels
• Community Activities
• Tours and Awareness-building
• Social Justice
• Handicraft Marketplace

Last year, 80 musicians from 10 international bands and 15 local bands, coupled with over 70 dancers from all over the world, performed at Bet Lahem Live. This brought together an international community of people to share broadly and deeply on faith, culture, non-violent resistance, political transformation, and the sanctity of life.

 Palestinian Voices are Heard, at Last

Many tourists who come to the Holy Land spend limited time in the West Bank. And when they do come, they mostly just visit Bethlehem to see the historical and religious sites for a few hours—like the Church of the Nativity, and then they leave. Many international travelers do not engage with the local Palestinian culture when they are here. This is a shame, because Bethlehem is a thriving cultural center of the Palestinian heritage.

Members of the community here are deeply kindhearted and ready to welcome internationals into their homes for Arabic coffee, tea (chai), and even a delicious meal.

The festival invites internationals into engaging with the local community. Said Zarzar, the festival’s artistic director, urges international travelers with enthusiasm to join in the celebration:

“Come explore life. Don’t be satisfied by those bus trips that happen in the Holy Land. They don’t show you the reality. They don’t give you the chance to meet with us. So, we are asking you to come, to help us celebrate life together, to meet with Palestinian artists. To meet with the women of Star Street, to taste Palestinian food, to dance—and to listen from your hearts. So this is the way you support us. You help us in making our voices heard—voices th t are calling for peace, for equality, for coexistence. From the place where Jesus was born, behind the walls, come to Bethlehem. Come in August. You’ll enjoy it.”

The Palestinian community of this region has suffered immensely over the last 50 years of the Israeli military occupation. However, Palestinians are not asking for pity. They are asking for engagement. They are asking for international travelers to the Holy Land to meet with them, to hear their stories, listen to their hearts—their fears, dreams, and hopes—and join them in pursuing peace and justice.

Bet Lahem Live serves to empower a Bethlehem identity, both locally and internationally. When foreigners come and take part in the festival, they truly engage with the local culture. Palestinian voices are finally being heard by internationals.

This annual festival challenges local and international communities to take action to envision an ideal future for Bethlehem, as well as for the people of the larger Palestinian community. This event serves as a global model of how to connect culture with matters of social justice. After all, there cannot be peace where there is not justice.