Essays for Falastin is a non-profit mutual aid project created with the aim of raising funds for Palestinian people. This goal is worked toward through the creation of essays surrounding the topics of culture, intersectional liberation (queer, non-white, disabled & neurodivergent, etc), the fight against oppression, contemporary geopolitics, historical memory, anti-fascism, and more. These essays become available to Patreon subscribers, with multiple essays added every month.
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Our mission is to streamline direct donations to a) the campaigns of Palestinian people and b) non-profit organizations that have a direct, on-the-ground impact on Palestinian people. The reason for this project offering an essay subscription service as opposed to promoting existing campaigns/organizations is that people are often more likely to put their money to something transactional rather than something purely altruistic. Essays specifically have been shown to be in high demand, as evidenced by platforms like Substack. Having a social media presence as a nonprofit is also conducive to donation, as statistics estimate that 32% of people who engage with nonprofits via social media end up donating (Nonprofit Source, 2024).
Essays for Falastin is not meant as an alternative to making direct donations. In fact, we prefer and highly encourage that you make a direct donation to the campaigns of Palestinians if you are able to. This project is instead meant to widen the pool of donors to those who would not usually donate, who are unsure where to donate, who wish to donate and gain access to our essays, and who want to contribute with monthly donations as well as direct ones.
The following is a non-exhaustive list of the values Essays for Falastin stands for. These values will be reflected in the essays. If you’re thinking about becoming a part of the team (especially as an essay writer), please read the following to make sure you align with them.
1. Anti-fascism: against the authoritarianism of autocracy, theocracy, colonialism, and apartheid; against the exaltation of the military and imperialism; against the idea of a “superior” race/group of people; in favor of truly equitable and egalitarian societies in line with indigenous models of sovereignty
2. Intersectional and collective liberation: understanding that the fight against patriarchy, racism, ableism, ageism, colorism, orientalism, anti-semitism, islamophobia, homo- and transphobia, and other forms of discrimination are inherently interconnected and thus must be addressed taking into account the many nuances of the intersections between marginalized identities
3. Mutual aid: our circumstances are highly determined by the life we are born into and as such our privileges are something to be used for the betterment of those facing hardship; we are interconnected amongst each other and believing that someone else’s life is divorced from our own leaves us vulnerable to experience the same
4. Cultural understanding: taking into account cultural differences into our worldview as a testament to the diversity of the world; understanding cultural differences as opportunities to learn and grow, not to be divided
5. Religious freedom: everyone has the right to hold their own religious and/or spiritual beliefs and practice them freely (this holds true as long as religious beliefs are not imposed on others or used to take away others’ rights)