Seraj Libraries

Seraj Libraries Working alongside Palestinian communities to establish libraries as vibrant community centers.

‏https://forms.gle/qLRULWLap5sohAVu7

Seraj Library Project is a non-profit that establishes libraries as Centers of Change in rural villages and refugee camps in Palestine

Join us as we celebrate 20 years of Seraj with an afternoon rooted in culture, stories, music, and community.Come early ...
10/09/2026

Join us as we celebrate 20 years of Seraj with an afternoon rooted in culture, stories, music, and community.

Come early to explore the Seraj Souk, Visualizing Palestine exhibit, Siti’s Stories™ | Palestinian Heritage Podcast , Children’s Library Corner, raffle baskets, and Palestinian food cedars —then gather in the theater for stories and film from Palestine, live musical storytelling performance with Ronnie Malley & صُمود , and Dal3ouna Dabke !

Stay afterward to shop, revisit the exhibits, and catch up with old and new friends.

Sunday, September 13 | 3–7 PM
Irish American Heritage Center, Chicago

Come for the stories. Stay for the community. Celebrate 20 years with us. 🇵🇸

Step into the Seraj Souk (Market)!Shop Palestinian and discover ceramics, tatreez, kuffiehs, books, olive wood, olive oi...
04/09/2026

Step into the Seraj Souk (Market)!

Shop Palestinian and discover ceramics, tatreez, kuffiehs, books, olive wood, olive oil, jewelry, art, home goods, and more—all while supporting Palestinian artisans and Seraj’s work across Palestine.

Come early, wander the Souk, enjoy Palestinian food, music, stories, and dabkeh, and stay as we celebrate 20 years of Seraj Libraries with our community.

📅 Sunday, September 13 | 3–7 PM
📍 Irish American Heritage Center, Chicago

Shop Palestinian. Support artisans. Keep stories alive.

🎟️ Get your tickets today at serajlibraries.org Link in Profile

Meet Laurie Salameh, Co-Founder & Executive Director of the Seraj Library Project.Joining us from Palestine, Laurie will...
01/09/2026

Meet Laurie Salameh, Co-Founder & Executive Director of the Seraj Library Project.

Joining us from Palestine, Laurie will share stories from the ground and present a special short film created by the Seraj Palestine team.

Twenty years ago, Laurie helped launch a vision rooted in books, storytelling, and community. Today, that vision has grown into libraries, cultural arts spaces, storytelling centers, and community hubs serving rural villages, refugee camps, and marginalized communities across Palestine.

We are honored to welcome Laurie as we celebrate 20 years of Seraj and look ahead to the next chapter.

📅 Sunday September 13, 2026
🕒 3:00–7:00 PM
📍 Irish American Heritage Center, Chicago

🎟 Tickets & information: www.serajlibraries.org

Joining us all the way from Ramallah, Palestine, is Wesam Ahmad, Executive Director of Visualizing Palestine Visualizing...
31/08/2026

Joining us all the way from Ramallah, Palestine, is Wesam Ahmad, Executive Director of Visualizing Palestine Visualizing Palestine

Wesam will lead a conversation on The Power of Visual Storytelling: Preserving and Sharing Palestinian Narratives, exploring how stories, images, and creative media help preserve memory, challenge erasure, and amplify Palestinian voices.

As part of Seraj’s 20th Anniversary Celebration, we are honored to welcome Wesam and to host the powerful exhibit Why We Record, curated by Visualizing Palestine Visualizing Palestine and AFSC American Friends Service Cmte

Come be part of an afternoon of stories, culture, community, music, food, and meaningful conversation.

📅 September 13, 2026
🕒 3:00–7:00 PM
📍 Irish American Heritage Center
4626 N Knox Ave., Chicago, IL

Your support is an investment in libraries, literacy, storytelling, cultural arts, heritage preservation, and community spaces that strengthen Palestinian communities.

🎟 Tickets & information: www.serajlibraries.org

We are honored to host Why We Record: Defying Fragmentation and Erasure in Palestine, a powerful exhibit curated by the ...
30/08/2026

We are honored to host Why We Record: Defying Fragmentation and Erasure in Palestine, a powerful exhibit curated by the American Friends Service Committee American Friends Service Cmte and Visualizing Palestine as part of Seraj’s 20th Anniversary Event.

Through compelling visuals, photography, and personal stories, the exhibit explores themes of fragmentation, displacement, return, and imagining a future rooted in dignity and freedom.

At its heart, Why We Record honors the storytellers whose courage brings forward the lived realities of Palestinians and preserves narratives that might otherwise be erased. Their voices remind us that storytelling is not only an act of remembrance, but also an act of resilience, resistance, and hope.

Join us as we reflect on the power of stories to connect communities, preserve history, and envision a just future.

📅 September 13, 2026
🕒 3:00–7:00 PM
📍 Irish American Heritage Center, Chicago

🎟 Tickets & information: www.serajlibraries.org

Food and hospitality are at the heart of Palestinian culture—the table is where we gather, welcome, share stories, and b...
29/08/2026

Food and hospitality are at the heart of Palestinian culture—the table is where we gather, welcome, share stories, and build community. We’re excited to have cedars Palestine Kitchen bringing those traditions to our celebration 20 years of Seraj.

This year, we’ve redesigned food service to make it easier and more enjoyable for our guests, with a delicious Palestinian meal served from 3–5 PM.

Join us to celebrate the libraries, cultural spaces, and storytelling programs that Seraj has built alongside Palestinian communities across the West Bank for 20 years.

📅 Sunday, September 13 | 3–7 PM
📍 Irish American Heritage Center, Chicago
🎟️ Tickets: serajlibraries.org

Come celebrate with us—and help carry Seraj into its next chapter.

Food and hospitality are at the heart of Palestinian culture—the table is where we gather, welcome, share stories, and b...
29/08/2026

Food and hospitality are at the heart of Palestinian culture—the table is where we gather, welcome, share stories, and build community. We’re excited to have cedars Palestine Kitchen bringing those traditions to our celebration 20 years of Seraj.

This year, we’ve redesigned food service to make it easier and more enjoyable for our guests, with a delicious Palestinian meal served from 3–5 PM.

Food. Music. Stories. Souk. Community.

Join us to celebrate the libraries, cultural spaces, and storytelling programs that Seraj has built alongside Palestinian communities in the West Bank for 20 years.

GET YOUR TICKETS

📅 Sunday, September 13 | 3–7 PM
📍 Irish American Heritage Center, Chicago
🎟️ Tickets: serajlibraries.org

Come celebrate with us—and help carry Seraj into its next chapter.

Siti’s Stories: On the Record, Why We DocumentGet your Tickets; Link in Bio At the Siti’s Stories table, participants wi...
27/08/2026

Siti’s Stories: On the Record, Why We Document

Get your Tickets; Link in Bio

At the Siti’s Stories table, participants will explore the importance of documenting the stories that live within our culture, heritage, and family histories. From the journeys that brought us here to the recipes, traditions, memories, and stories passed from one generation to the next. Through interactive storytelling and documentation activities, participants will discover why preserving these stories in our own voices matters and learn simple ways to begin documenting their own histories. Participants will leave inspired to ask questions, record stories, and preserve what they hope future generations will know, remember, and carry forward.

تنعى مكتبات سراج ودار الحكايات ببالغ الحزن والأسى الحكواتي والباحث في التراث الشعبي الفلسطيني حمزة العقرباوي، الذي غيّبه...
30/12/2025

تنعى مكتبات سراج ودار الحكايات ببالغ الحزن والأسى الحكواتي والباحث في التراث الشعبي الفلسطيني حمزة العقرباوي، الذي غيّبه الغرق في نهر النيل، فانقطعت حكاية قبل اكتمالها، وبقي أثرها حيًّا في الذاكرة.

لم يكن حمزة حكواتيا وباحثا وراوياً فحسب، بل حارسًا أمينًا للحكاية الشعبية الفلسطينية، أعاد للتراث صوته ومعناه، وربط الماضي بالحاضر بصدق ومعرفة، برحيله، خسرنا عقلًا مُحبًّا للتراث، وصوتًا كان يجري كالنهر، يمنح الحياة لكل شيء يرويه.

الرحمة لروحه، والسلام لذكراه، والعزاء لكل من عرفه وسمع وتعلّم من حكاياته.

Seraj Libraries and the House of Stories mourn, with profound sorrow and deep sadness, the storyteller and researcher of Palestinian folk heritage Hamza Al-Aqrabawi, who passed away after drowning in the Nile River. Thus, a tale was cut short before its completion, yet its impact remains alive in memory.

Hamza was not only a storyteller, researcher, and narrator; he was a faithful guardian of the Palestinian folk tale. He restored voice and meaning to heritage, and truthfully and knowledgeably bridged the past with the present. With his passing, we have lost a mind devoted to heritage and a voice that flowed like a river, giving life to everything it told.

Mercy to his soul, peace to his memory, and deepest condolences to all who knew him, listened to him, and learned from his stories.

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