The Art of Resistance: Defending Academic Freedom since 1933 | Page 76

A nail in the wall of exile
a flower in the heart
Text translated from Arabic
by Hassan Abdulrazzak

It is overwhelming to contemplate just how many people go
into exile, migrate or become displaced, forcibly or voluntarily,
scattering across the world. Despite differing motives,
the outcome remains the same: a confusing sense of freedom and
security coupled with depression and anxiety. It affects ordinary
people, as well as the academic or creative, for whom exile (or
migration) offers the opportunity to live in stability and shine in
their chosen field. Examples of successful migrants are numerous:
the German-Austrian-American Albert Einstein, the PalestinianAmerican Edward Said, the Spanish-French Picasso, the CzechFrench Milan Kundera, the Iraqi-British Saadi Yousef and the
German Bertolt Brecht who, in the midst of World War II, offered
the following advice to fellow exiles: No need to drive a nail into the
wall to hang your hat on... don’t worry about watering the flowers
– in fact, don’t plant them. You will have gone back home before
they bloom.
In 1974, I took his advice to heart because it offered me hope of
a quick return to my homeland. But instead the flower of doubt
began to bloom in my heart and my wall became studded with nails
as I hung paintings given to me by fellow artists in exile. Amongst
these were works by Yasemin Omer whose abstract paintings,
alluding to our homeland, were always half shrouded in mystery.
Her paintings distil the essence of what remains in the memory:
the moon, the sun, the waters of the Tigris and Euphrates, the
tanned faces and eyes reflecting loss, confusion and fear. Over the
years, these paintings have grown more powerful and resonant,
as the nail of exile has plunged deeper into my heart. The nail has
rusted and is now impossible to remove.
If there is no lifeline – from someone, from an organisation
74

The Art of Resistance? Defending Academic Freedom

such as CARA – you can be overcome by a sense of impotence, of
marginalisation, a second or third class citizen. The sense of your
irrelevance will forever haunt you, so that you escape from the
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