User:Greenthumb7/sandbox

Palestine
In Palestine the olive tree and plant carry the symbolic connotations of resilience, health, ancestral ties and community. Researchers have found that the olive tree are tied into the Palestinian's Sutra, A’wana and Sumud. The tree is a means of survival and security, represents their bond to their land, community, and animals. Olive trees also serve as a symbol of their identities, which includes their physical and emotional aspects and their socio-cultural values. Palestinian people view the olive trees as the first witnesses that Palestine is their homeland.

The season harvest is referred to as, ‘Palestine’s wedding’ and is considered a national holiday where children and faculty members receive two days off school to join the harvest. This holiday allows for community members to gather and serve as a ritual that encompasses their values surrounding family, labor power, community, and aid for other members of the community that do not possess land. This is practice through the tradition of leaving fruit on a tree during the harvest so that those who do not have land and are unable to partake in the harvest can still reap the benefits.

The symbolism connotation of resistance that is attached to the olive tree in Palestine comes from the displacement of Palestinian peoples. During Nakba in 1948 many Palestinian people were displaced and there was a massive land loss that included the loss of olive trees. Olives make up 25% of Palestine's economy as they use it to create oil, fuel, food and for medicinal products. In 1967 Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) had seized further land territories in the Gaza Strip and West Bank where majority of the olive trees are planted. With new zoning, checkpoints, and illegal walls being build the labors had to seek permits to harvest their olive trees. As a form of resistance, Palestinian people would plant olive trees to prevent Israeli forces from taking more land and this has shaped the new symbolism of resistance.

bold