’Hayhat’: Ashoura in Social Media
Nour Rida
"Ashoura is a representation to what we live, it is a bunch of concepts and theories that were put 1400 years ago by Imam Hussein (as) and the sacrifices he made to set a role model to Islamic values, good manners, optimism, sacrifice, giving, kindness, and other characteristics that are alive today thanks to him."
"Karbala is a school of righteousness, a school that teaches us to work on improving every aspect of our personalities and lives. And more important, Imam Hussein was sent to all mankind, not just to Muslims, particularly Shiites."
Starting from here, Lebanese activists, in cooperation with the Lebanese association for arts, Resalat, launched a campaign in Ashoura 2013 under the name "Hayat" (meaning Humiliated, Never!).
No to humiliation, no to suppression and tyranny. It is a cry to fight cruelty and despotism and support to the oppressed. This is where the slogan emerged, said Ali Zein, one of the major activists in the campaign. Only remarkable is that the campaign has gone online widely, in addition to billboards and posters.
The event of Ashoura has been presented through photos, videos, slogans, quotes for imam Hussein and his household. The campaign brought back photos even from the eighties related to the event.
Entitled "Hayhat", the campaign opened the door for all people to spread the word of Imam Hussein, via the universal language of art. Anyone has the chance to contribute to the campaign's page by posting material related to the event.
30 days before the beginning of the Hijri month of Muharram, graphic designers, photographers, visual material artists, activists and amateurs from different backgrounds and even cultures that brainstormed and prepared videos, photos, posters, and other artworks to highlight the memory.
Touching photos from a 30 or more years old archive, also photos during previous Ashoura events for Sayyed Abbas Moussawi, the former martyred Secretary General of Hizbullah, also photos for the current leader His Eminence Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah were included among the artworks.
The campaign also included quotes on the teachings of the school of Ashoura. The quotes included those of leader of the Islamic Revolution Imam Ali Khamenei, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, and other leaders who had spoken about the topic.
More than 270 professional designers and skilled activists worked together on reviving the great annual memory of Ashoura. So far, almost 200 pieces out of 660 prepared material for the campaign have been revealed only.
As for the tints and shades of the main logo and the official page, it's a combination of black and yellow, holding the slogan "Hayhat" [Arabic for Humiliated, Never!]; it is the slogan Imam Hussein had said during the battle of Karbala, assuring that he will not accept humiliation and insisting on raising the word of justice all the way until martyrdom.
So far, more than 21 thousand Facebook users have joined the page in less than one month.
The campaign organizers and Facebook page administrators have vowed to boost the campaign and widen their activities to unite the Resistance path and keep the words of Imam Hussein (as) alive.
Source: Al-Ahed News
