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<font size="1"><a href="https://www.thenation.com/article/society/womens-boxing-gaza/">https://www.thenation.com/article/society/womens-boxing-gaza/</a>
</font><h1 class="gmail-reader-title">A Women’s Boxing Team Grows in Gaza</h1>
<div class="gmail-credits gmail-reader-credits">By Dave Zirin - January 5, 2021</div></div>
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<p><span>T</span>he Israeli government has continued its 14-year
blockade against Gaza for reasons beyond the military and the strategic.
The blockade—alongside bombings and selective assassinations—also
accomplishes the political and ideological goal of killing hope. It
crushes the aspirations that Palestinian people might have for justice,
self-determination, or even a better life. </p>
<p>That’s what makes sports so potent and popular among young people in
Gaza. When playing soccer or basketball—two extremely popular
pastimes—they feel that another world may indeed be possible. That is
why I found it to be potent, powerful, and profoundly moving to learn
that, for the first time, there is a women’s and girl’s boxing program
in Gaza. Such a team has the capacity to build the reserves of hope and
in addition smash gender norms as well as knockout the very idea of
passivity.
</p><p>As Covid has hit Gaza particularly hard, with its absence of
medications and hospital infrastructure, the new team has actually
doubled in size since June. Now as many as 45 female boxers are on the
squad, ranging from ages 7 to 21. Because of the privations caused by
the blockade, they are not exactly overwhelmed with facilities and
equipment. Some speed bags are stuffed pillowcases and heavy bags are
mattresses. They even hold practices on the beach because of Covid. But
the hard work is bearing fruit and this ragtag team will be competing in
Kuwait this February under the banner of the Palestinian National
Boxing Team.</p>
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<p>I reached out through intermediaries to their coach,
35-year-old Osama Ayob, as well as several of the players to find out
what motivates them to go to the beach and punch mattresses. Coach Ayob
says that his own inspiration for the team came from girl’s and women’s
boxing teams in Egypt, Lebanon, and Algeria. “I wanted to create a
Palestinian girls’ team,” he says. “Women are equal to men and they are
half of the society here in Gaza. It also helps to build strength and
protect them from any danger.”
</p><p>I asked about the challenges to setting up this club and he said,
“The place [the Gaza Strip] is small, there’s a shortage of money,
there’s no legal boxing circuit, a shortage of hand protection gloves, a
shortage of all the protective equipment. All<em> </em>is<em> </em>at a trainer’s expense.”
</p><p>I also wanted to know how the broader Gazan community responded
to the start of this boxing team. “There was a bit of a surprise,” he
says. “But then it became accepted, because I was training girls at the
seashore, at the <em>corniche</em> [the beachfront], and in public
places so that the idea would be accepted by Gazan society.” Ayob sees
not just health, exercise, and competition emerging from this endeavor
but also national pride. “Naturally, it is just a sport,” he says, “but
we would like to raise the flag of Palestine at all Arab and foreign
forums and throughout the world, so that the flag of Palestine may be
held high.”</p>
<p>Reema Abu Rahma is a 22-year-old boxer on the team. She says, “I love
boxing because it’s a beautiful, wonderful hobby, and also for
self-defense, and it helps to release negative energy.” She says that
the hardest part of being on the team is “the difficulty of being
accepted by the Gazan community because I am a girl and the difficulty
of finding sports equipment suitable for girls.” Her family “was very
excited and happy” when they heard she was joining the team, “especially
my father and my friends were very supportive, and they also became
interested in girls’ boxing.”
</p><p>Her dream is “to compete in an international competition and to
become an international player and raise the name of Palestine
internationally. Finally, I would like to participate in international
clubs and in training camps so that we can compete with the other Arab
and international nations.”
</p><p>This is an exciting development in Gaza, where sports is never
just sports. And when a team can survive—if not thrive—amid the
blockade, it sends a message of resiliency to oppressed people all
around the world. It even feels something like hope.
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