Pop Culture

A lot of Americans (and probably others, but especially Americans) imagine Palestine as a land of archaic customs and traditional Islamic views (which they see as oppressive).

It is true that - overall - the culture here is a bit more conservative than in many parts of the U.S. of A., but is probably comparable to living in the Bible Belt or Utah. Religion is major part of the culture, and it influences Palestinian society(pre-marital sex is a big taboo, homosexuality is not widely accepted, there are clear gender role expectations, etc.). However, none of it is really markedly different than in a conservative place in the U.S. Parents want their kids to follow God's word, do well in school, stay away from the "bad boys and girls" and to be good citizens. It may be Islam rather than Christianity, so the manner of dress may look different and the sabbath day is different, but really, it's all pretty much the same.

Also similar to the U.S., is the presence of a more secular society. There is a significant part of the population that prefers to keep its religion separate from the state, especially among the younger generations and more affluent social circles.
This is possibly due to the fact that many people, especially in Ramallah/Al Bireh, have lived/studied abroad in Europe, Canada or the U.S., and have adopted some of the aspects of Western influence that they find beneficial.

Western pop culture is alive and well here...which is surely much to the chagrin of many parents who want to keep their kids as innocent as possible and to avoid issues that come up with dating. (Again, see conservative America.) Last night there was a dance at the Friends Boys School (which is a coed upper school, grades 7-12), and the American pop music was blaring into my apartment.

Songs like:

50 CENT feat. JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE & TIMBALAND
Ayo Technology

MAROON 5
Wake Up Call

GYM CLASS HEROES
Clothes Off!! [Edit]

WILL.I.AM
I Got It From My Mama

LINKIN PARK
Bleed It Out [Radio Edit]

BEYONCE
Green Light

KANYE WEST
Stronger [Edit]

NELLY FURTADO feat. MISSY ELLIOTT
Do It

RIHANNA
Shut Up And Drive

KT TUNSTALL
Hold On

NATALIE IMBRUGLIA
Glorious

JENNIFER LOPEZ
Do It Well

BRITNEY SPEARS
Gimme More





All of these songs are on the top twenty of RAM FM, a popular local radio station in English started by South Africans as a means to facilitate "peace through harmony". People also are exposed to a lot of American and European TV via satellite, and globalization has brought many American products to the Middle East. Coca-Cola, Levi's, Dora the Explorer...American brands are easy to find. In fact, they even have American STORE brands here. The Store brand of choice? Kroger. Who knew?

The nearly universal response I've received when I introduce myself to people in the 2 1/2 months that I've been here: "Welcome! I love America. We love America, but the government..." followed by a clicking tut-tut sound indicating disapproval.

It's a sentiment that I find easy to relate to.