The festival, which claims to be the largest celebration of Palestinian literature and culture in North America, was first held 2020.
[2] The festival was originally scheduled in March 2020, but was virtually presented in December 2020 due to the pandemic, with an attendance of more than 3000 people.
[3] Among others, it was sponsored by the Lannan Foundation, the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, and the Columbia University Center for Palestine Studies.
Programming included oral storytelling, graphic novels, dress-making, and other displays of Palestinian culture.
[5][6] It was criticized based on the participation of speakers with a public history of accused antisemitism and anti-zionism.