Message to the wonderful people who like this page!
First of all, I want to thank you for being here. If you are new to the page, you may yet be in the stage of discovering what my contribution is to the struggle for the freedom of our land, Palestine. Please bear with me as I introduce myself to you.
My name is Tariq Shadid. I am Palestinian, born in exile in the Netherlands, currently living in the Gulf. I am a hard-working surgeon who is dedicated to healing his patients with the same dedication that I have for serving my family, and the cause of Justice for our homeland.
I am also a creative person: next to my full-time job I have chosen to dedicate my creative talents to giving expression to the struggle of our people for the liberation of Palestine.
MUSIC - I write songs that are my own version of pop music, with words that are mainly in English, but also some in Arabic and in Dutch. I say pop music, because most songs are in the pop music format of 3 - 6 minutes, with a repeating chorus and several verses. However, its musical styles vary from my own funky style of jazz-pop, to rock, to hip-hop, to piano and guitar ballads, to modern as well as traditional styles of Arabic music. All my songs have a message of their own, although not all deal only with the Palestinian cause: there are some love songs and songs about other aspects of life there too.
I have 105 songs online that can all be downloaded for free. I play guitar (electric and acoustic), bass guitar, drums, piano (and keyboards and synthesizers) as well as some Arabic instruments such as Oud, shibbabeh (Palestinian flute) and darbuka. Of course, I also sing all the vocals on my songs. I own the rights to all my music, since none of the songs are covers of songs by other artists, but were all completely written and composed by me. All my songs with the exception of the 12 numbers on my flagship album Front Door Key and one of my Dutch songs, were also recorded entirely by me in my own studio.
You can check out all my songs at
http://www.soundclick.com/docjazz, but you can also find some of them on Soundcloud (
https://soundcloud.com/doc-jazz ), iTunes, Reverbnation and other music platforms. My songs are all available for free, because the message of our struggle is the essence of these songs and must be allowed to spread as far and as wide as possible.
WRITING - I have written over a hundred articles of political analysis of the Palestinian cause, that have been published widely, most of them by the Palestine Chronicle (
http://www.palestinechronicle.com/ ) , my favorite outlet of analysis and articles about our struggle. I have a 358-page book named "Understanding Palestine" that contains a number of my articles bundled together, and that received quite positive reviews from a variety of sources. You can find it on Amazon at this link:
http://www.amazon.com/Understanding-Palestine-Tariq-Shadid/dp/1438233000ACTIVISM - For many years, I have been an active public speaker and co-organizer of pro-Palestine demonstrations especially when I lived in the Netherlands. I was also the media-coordinator and spokesman for the Palestinian Community in the Netherlands from 2004 - 2008, and have defended our cause on TV, radio and in newspapers. I am still open to public speaking in English and in Dutch, when available.
SOCIAL MEDIA ACTIVISM - I have contributed in an active way to social media activism on a variety of occasions through Twitter, especially with the 'Twitterstorms' that we organized for the cause of Palestinian hunger strikers in Israeli prisons. Also, my Facebook page in itself can be considered a hub of social media activism.
DRAWING - It used to be my main hobby when I was a child, and still every now and then I use my drawing skills to give expression to our struggle in cartoons, posters or other types of drawings. You can find some of my drawings on the Doc Jazz page in the photo-albums.
WEB-MASTERING - While the importance of websites has diminished significantly with the upsurge of social media platforms, I have built and am still maintaining my website 'The Musical Intifada' since 2001. It brings all of my other efforts together, and whatever I write usually gets published there first before it is distributed to other channels. It also has all the music and video players on board that can introduce you quickly to my music and videos. Have a look at
http://www.docjazz.com/ , but I strongly advise that you visit it on a laptop or desktop, since the mobile website is a strongly watered down version of the desktop original.
VIDEO - I have recently tried my hand at making some satire videos, which apparently were able to draw some attention, both positive and negative, which comes with the risky and challenging trade of satire. I had fun doing it, and I might make some more. They are not on my Youtube station, but can be found on my FB page.
I have a few other videos up on line of my speeches and lectures. Next to this, I have created music videos for many of my songs, which you can find on my Youtube channel:
http://www.youtube.com/EQualizer1948--------------------------------------
I hope this introduction encourages you to explore my work, especially my music, which I truly believe supersedes all my other efforts in terms of content, artistic expression, message, and comprehensiveness.
If you don't feel like doing that, just keep your eye on this page, invite your friends, and you will every now and then get your dose of my modest contributions to the valiant struggle of our people.
I welcome you to my page, meaning to be hospitable and accessible, and hoping that I will never disappoint you. I am in full understanding of the fact that people come in all types of personalities, religions and cultures, and I love them all - with a radical exception for people who adhere to racist ideologies such as Zionism and other forms of racism. Only tolerance can make this world a good place for us and our children to live in. Hatred destroys; love builds.
I will NEVER recognize the Zionist entity that has the nerve to call itself 'Israel' after having expelled our people, oppressing and persecuting and murdering the ones that remain steadfast in their land, and continuing to sow hatred, violence and injustice in our land and in the entire region.
I will NEVER give up on our inalienable Right of Return, nor on even one inch of the land of historical Palestine. It is our inalienable right, which is in need of no discussion or debate, and we Palestinians are a sharing and loving people who will coexist with whomever has peace in their hearts, and extend their hands to us in friendship. We are, however, also a proud people who will never bow our heads to any oppressor.
As is the slogan of my song 'Intifada': NEVER GIVE UP!
Until liberation and return, and in solidarity to all oppressed and persecuted people in the world, I salute you all and send you a message of love, hope and friendship.
Dr. Tariq Shadid
aka Doc Jazz
