In this episode, Dalal shares her journey to veganism, deeply rooted in Palestinian culture and her upbringing in a felahi community. Her blog "Vegan on Budget / Za’atar Queen" emerged from a desire to document her plant-based lifestyle while highlighting Palestinian culinary heritage, especially the cultural and political significance of za’atar. She explains how za’atar is not 'a seasoning' but a symbol of identity, resistance, and heritage for Palestinians. Also, Dalal reflects on growing up with fresh, homegrown vegetables and how veganism for her is a continuation of Felahi traditions. She critiques mainstream veganism's consumerist focus and emphasizes the need for Arabic-language vegan resources, leading her to create the podcast What the Bateekh. Through conversations with Arab vegans, she explored how veganism intersects with anti-colonial struggle, memory, and identity. Olive harvesting, za’atar preparation, and food sharing are presented as acts of cultural resilience and resistance to Israeli settler colonialism, apartheid and occupation. For Dalal, veganism in Palestine has emerged as a political and cultural expression of survival, memory, and Palestinian liberation.

Captioned version for Deaf and Hard of Hearing people available here.

Follow What the Bateekh Podcast here

The Palestinian artists featured in this episode include:

Dalal Abu Amneh (Palestinian Singer, Producer and Neuroscientist from Nazareth) - Follow Dalal here  and check out Dalal's website here.

Mariam Tamari (Palestinian-Japanese Soprano currently living in Paris) - Follow Mariam here.  Check out this interview with Mariam here. Also check out Mariam's website here. 

The Vegans for Palestine Podcast Team are so proud of Dalal and Mariam's amazing talent. 

Free Palestine.

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