By Bill Cotter, Honors student
"No Fences, No Borders” is a collaboration between close friends in an effort to share the eight months that I spent traveling the Middle East with a wider audience. I had the opportunity to live for six months of my life in the Occupied West Bank and in many ways it has become my home. It's something we hear about in the news a lot, but we don’t often have the opportunity to see the other side of things and see what life is like on the ground in the West Bank or Gaza. I want more people to grasp what's actually happening and the role the United States plays in the situation. The amount of love and hospitality that I was shown in Palestine was unfathomable. All I was asked for in return was a promise to talk about what I saw and experienced when I returned to the United States.
It has thus far manifested itself in the form of a 540pg, three volume, travel journal where I essentially chronicled my daily life during my eight months abroad. I kept everything from the most mundane daily activities, to extremely politically and emotionally intense writing. I also hosted a photography exhibition in Grand Rapids, MI on May 14th, 2011. I took thousands of photos while in Palestine, and the exhibition consists of some of the more intense and moving images that I felt I captured while there. My exhibition will be hung in the Gallery Lounge at GSU in March. I wanted to do it earlier but all of the spots this semester were taken. I'm planning on contacting the American Friends Service Committee as well about having an art opening sometime this fall and displaying my photos there as well.
Here are some links to some social media things I've been doing in support of the project:
Website: www.nofencesnoborders.com
Interview I did for a local radio station in Michigan where the exhibition was held: Catalyst Radio Interview
Facebook page for the project: No Fences, No Borders
