The changing identity of the Palestinian community and the link to their homeland is explored in Handing on the key: Palestinians in Australia at the Immigration Museum from 21 August to 22 November 2009.

The majority of Palestinians living in Australia have no lived experience of Palestine. Handing on the key explores how a sense of cultural identity is passed from one generation to the next through tradition, stories, activism and commemoration and how this continuing journey shapes and changes Palestinian identity through generations.

“The older and younger generations of the Palestinian community have different ideas about what defines their identity”, says Maria Tence, Manager of Community Exhibitions for the Immigration Museum. “This new exhibition explores how Palestinians preserve their culture and hand it on to a new generation”.

Many Palestinians living in Australia expected that they would one day return to their homeland. They left everything in their homes, locking the door behind them and taking the key. Many were unable to return and most homes have since been demolished or are now inaccessible. Today the keys – all they have left of their homes – are a reminder of what they have lost and what they hope someday to reclaim.

“The plan was to stay for a couple of years until I received Australian citizenship and then return to the Arab world, but 16 years later and blessed with two daughters I am still here. Working and living in Australia has had a big impact on my thinking – things are easier, there isn’t that bureaucracy you have to fight all the time – but the dream of a free Palestine will always stay in my mind”, says Imad Sukkar, Palestinian Community Association.

The first wave of Palestinians migrating to Australia was in the late 1960s following the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip. The beginning of the Lebanese war in 1975 and the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982 caused further migrations. The most recent wave came in the aftermath of the Gulf War in 1991. In 2006 there were as many as 7,500 Palestinians living in Australia, with over 1,500 living in Victoria.

Handing on the key celebrates the contribution that Palestinians have made to Australian society and is filled with migration stories. The exhibition also features traditional costumes, travel documents and other mementos that keep the Palestinian connection alive, as well as a video featuring a Palestinian dance group performing a traditional dance called dabkeh, 

The Immigration Museum, through its Community Exhibitions, provides a forum for a community’s shared voices to tell their migration story. Community exhibitions are created by communities themselves with support from the Museum. The Community Gallery has been open for over 10 years, and has hosted more than 50 Community Exhibitions.

Handing on the key: Palestinians in Australia is on show at the Immigration Museum from 21 August until 22 November 2009.

Immigration Museum, 400 Flinders Street, Melbourne. Admission $8 adults, free for children/concessions.
Open daily 10.00am to 5.00pm. Phone 13 11 02 or visit museumvictoria.com.au/immigration museum