Month: March 2018

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Rachel Corrie: 15 Years Later (Tomorrow)

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A fundraising event to raise $15,000 to sustain work in Rachel Corrie’s name.

Date: Saturday, Mar 17, 2018
Time: 12:30 – 3:00 pm
Location: Plymouth Church
1217 Sixth Ave
Seattle, WA  98101
Information: Event information here →
Tickets: Free admission
RSVP required here →
Event Details

Join the Rachel Corrie Foundation for Peace and Justice (RCF) in Seattle on Saturday, March 17, 2018, to remember Rachel Corrie and celebrate fifteen years of Palestinian solidarity and community organizing! In honor of 15 years of dedicated work around the globe, the Rachel Corrie Foundation wishes to raise $15,000 to support the programs that carry on Rachel’s vision, spirit, and creative energy!

This fundraising event will feature guest speakers Huwaida Arraf, Palestinian-American human rights activist, lawyer, and cofounder of the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), and Cindy and Craig Corrie, founders of the Rachel Corrie Foundation and parents of Rachel Corrie. Attendees will have the opportunity to hear first-hand accounts of Rachel Corrie and the work of the International Solidarity Movement, what the last 15 years have yielded in terms of struggle and victory for the Palestinian people, the challenges of holding the Israeli and US governments accountable, and the impact of grassroots organizing. Continue reading “Rachel Corrie: 15 Years Later (Tomorrow)”

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South Africa must stand up to Israeli apartheid

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The separation wall in the West Bank. (photo: Reuters)

A generation after South Africans won their freedom, Palestinians remain in bondage.

By Ali Abunimah | Mail & Guardian | Mar 14, 2018

Inspired by South Africa’s freedom struggle, BDS aims to mobilize people all over the world to do what governments won’t — apply pressure on Israel until it respects all the rights of the Palestinian people.

A year ago, the UN published a landmark report on Israel’s oppression of the Palestinian people. It found “beyond a reasonable doubt that Israel is guilty of policies and practices that constitute the crimes of apartheid.”

This was no rash conclusion, but one the authors reached after meticulous analysis of the evidence and law — especially the 1973 International Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid.

Palestinians hailed the report as a milestone in their struggle to see Israel held accountable for its brutal, decades long denial of their rights. But Israel’s powerful patrons had other plans. Immediately, the US government, Israel’s biggest arms supplier, began to threaten the United Nations.

Continue reading “South Africa must stand up to Israeli apartheid”

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Knesset bars Israeli lawmaker from overseas trip sponsored by JVP

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Israeli Lawmaker Youseff Jabareen (right) in the Knesset, 2016. (photo: Olivier Fitoussi / Haaretz)

Yousef Jabareen of the Arab Joint List requested to fly abroad for a series of lectures funded by Jewish Voice for Peace, but was refused.

By Jonathan Lis | Haaretz | Mar 14, 2018

“The committee’s decision constitutes a harsh blow to my freedom of political activity as an elected official. Without funding from the group extending the invitation, I will of course not be able to travel, due to the large travel expense and the round of lectures that is planned. This is activity that is a fundamental and integral part of my role as an opposition Knesset member.”
— Yousef Jabareen, Israeli Knesset member

For the first time, the Knesset Ethics Committee has decided to bar an MK [Member of the Knesset] from traveling abroad on a trip subsidized by an organization that supports a boycott of Israel.

Knesset member Yousef Jabareen of the predominantly Arab Joint List party was informed on Tuesday by committee chairman Yitzhak Vaknin (Shas) that the committee had decided to refuse his request to fly abroad for a series of lectures in April to be funded by Jewish Voice for Peace. The group appears on a Strategic Affairs Ministry list of groups supporting BDS, the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement against Israel.

Continue reading “Knesset bars Israeli lawmaker from overseas trip sponsored by JVP”

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Film: 1948, Creation and Catastrophe (Tomorrow)

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Pushing for Change: Mideast Focus Ministry Film Series V

Through riveting and moving personal recollections of Palestinians and Israelis, “1948” reveals the shocking events of the most pivotal year in the most controversial conflict in the world. Seen through the eyes of those who lived it, we see people pushing for change after suffering years of injustice and Holocaust.

Date: Friday, Mar 16, 2018
Time: 7:00 – 9:00 pm
Reception for the director: 6:15 – 7:00 pm
Location: Bloedel Hall
St. Mark’s Cathedral
1245 10th Ave E
Seattle, WA  98102
Information: Event website
Admission: Free
Alternate showing: Sat, Mar 17, 2018
6:30 – 8:30 pm
Edmonds United Methodist Church
828 Caspers St
Edmonds, WA  98020

Event Details

Our concern is to help balance the limited and confusing media coverage of the Holy Land. We use compelling films as an entry point for reflection and discussion. As Christians, we respond to Christ’s call to seek justice and love the oppressed. As Americans, we ask: Can we reconcile this calling with our government’s massive financial support of Israeli military operations? We hope the time will come when Jews, Muslims and Christians will again come together in harmony in the Holy Land.

In this series, we see how people pushed to bring about a safe country for the Jewish people, and how today others are still push- ing for safety and change. Do our efforts for change lead to peace and justice . . . or not?

More information here →

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How Stephen Hawking supported the Palestinian cause

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Stephen Hawking. (photo: Getty Images / CNBC)

The late renowned scientist will be remembered not only for his work, but his support for Palestine.

By Al Jazeera | Mar 14, 2018

“I accepted the invitation to the Presidential Conference with the intention that this would not only allow me to express my opinion on the prospects for a peace settlement but also because it would allow me to lecture on the West Bank. However, I have received a number of emails from Palestinian academics. They are unanimous that I should respect the boycott. In view of this, I must withdraw from the conference. Had I attended, I would have stated my opinion that the policy of the present Israeli government is likely to lead to disaster.”
— Stephen Hawking, May 3, 2013

Stephen Hawking, the world-renowned scientist who passed away on Wednesday at the age of 76, was known not only for his groundbreaking work but also for his support for Palestine.

Hawking, who had motor-neuron disease, made headlines in May 2013 when he decided to boycott a high-profile conference in Israel where he was scheduled to speak. The physicist was working at the Cambridge University in the UK at the time.

The Presidential Conference, an academic event held in Jerusalem, was being hosted by the late Israeli President Shimon Peres. In a letter Hawking sent to the organizers on May 3, he said the “policy of the present Israeli government is likely to lead to disaster.”

Continue reading “How Stephen Hawking supported the Palestinian cause”

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New program sends Palestinian students to Ivy League schools

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Nora Marzouqa, 17, chose to attend Harvard University for its research opportunities in medicine. (photo: Taawon)

The initiative, called Bridge Palestine, is the first of its kind in the country, providing after-school classes designed to train high-potential students to compete for education abroad.

By Zena Tahhan | Al Jazeera | Mar 14, 2018

“We teach them how to write good essays, how to succeed in interviews, how to be good citizens, the basic skills of dialogue, how to be rationally and not emotionally driven, what types of questions they should ask, how to have an open mind and be open to diversity.”
— Tafeeda Jarbawi, director-general of Taawon

Nora Marzouqa, a 17-year-old Palestinian from Bethlehem, has wanted to study at Harvard University for as long as she can remember. But the aspiring doctor and skilled debater grew up believing her dream was out of reach.

“I’ve seen my family members try to study abroad but they couldn’t for financial reasons, and also because we have to do the Tawjihi [Palestinian matriculation exam] and most universities abroad don’t recognize these test scores,” she tells Al Jazeera.

“It just seemed impossible for me — I didn’t know what the process was or how to go about doing it.”

Continue reading “New program sends Palestinian students to Ivy League schools”

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The Last Temptation

 

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How evangelicals, once culturally confident, became an anxious minority seeking political protection from the least traditionally religious president in living memory.

By Michael Gerson | The Atlantic | April 2018

[Evangelicals have] become one interest group among many, scrambling for benefits at the expense of others rather than seeking the welfare of the whole. Christianity is love of neighbor, or it has lost its way. And this sets an urgent task for evangelicals: to rescue their faith from its worst leaders.

Trump’s background and beliefs could hardly be more incompatible with traditional Christian models of life and leadership. Trump’s past political stances (he once supported the right to partial-birth abortion), his character (he has bragged about sexually assaulting women), and even his language (he introduced the words “pussy” and “shithole” into presidential discourse) would more naturally lead religious conservatives toward exorcism than alliance. This is a man who has cruelly publicized his infidelities, made disturbing sexual comments about his elder daughter, and boasted about the size of his penis on the debate stage. His lawyer reportedly arranged a $130,000 payment to a porn star to dissuade her from disclosing an alleged affair. Yet religious conservatives who once blanched at PG-13 public standards now yawn at such NC-17 maneuvers. We are a long way from The Book of Virtues.

Continue reading “The Last Temptation”

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Israel urges Irish bank to close account of NGO supporting BDS

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A London branch of the Allied Irish Bank (photo: International Business Times)

The move is part of a growing effort by Israel to force closure of bank accounts of organizations supporting BDS.

By Benjamin Weinthal | The Jerusalem Post | Mar 9, 2018

“I call on Allied Irish Banks to join the many institutions, leaders and citizens who are uniting to reject the discriminatory and antisemitic boycott movement against Israel, including by disassociating itself from any BDS-linked accounts.”
— Gilad Erdan, Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister

The Israeli government is pushing for the closure of scores of accounts provided by the Dublin-based Allied Irish Banks that fund the promotion of anti-Israel boycotts.

AIB, one of the Big Four commercial banks in Ireland, hosts Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign accounts, an organization based in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland that wages an aggressive BDS campaign targeting the Jewish state.

In January, the Israeli government included the Palestine Solidarity Campaign in a list of 20 BDS organizations whose representatives are not permitted to enter the Jewish state.

Continue reading “Israel urges Irish bank to close account of NGO supporting BDS”

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Inspiring Hope: The Kids4Peace Seattle Annual Benefit (Apr 24)

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Please join our brothers and sisters at Kids4Peace Seattle for their fifth annual spring celebration!

Date: Tuesday, Apr 24, 2017
Time: 7:00 – 8:30 pm
Location: Temple De Hirsch Sinai
1441 16th Ave
Seattle, WA 98122
Information: Event information here →
Email questions here →
Tickets: $50 per person
Register here →
Event Details

Help us recognize the many successes of the past year as we also look forward with excitement to upcoming programs. You will hear directly from youth involved in Kids4Peace and get updates on our work in the US and Jerusalem.

Tickets are $50 per person; there will be an opportunity to make an additional pledge of support at the event. The ticket price is fully tax-deductible, and all donations go directly to support the work of Kids4Peace as we develop a new generation of peace leaders.

Wine and coffee will be served, along with a delicious dessert buffet. Continue reading “Inspiring Hope: The Kids4Peace Seattle Annual Benefit (Apr 24)”

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Even in peace, the occupation will never end

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaking at the Economic Club of Washington, Mar 7, 2018. (photo: Jose Luis Magana / AP)

Netanyahu envisions a future of permanent military occupation of the West Bank.

By Michael Schaeffer Omer-Man | +972 Magazine | Mar 8, 2018

“I don’t want the Palestinians as citizens of Israel and I don’t want them as subjects of Israel. So I want a solution where they have all the powers they need to govern themselves but none of the powers that would threaten us. What that means is that whatever the solution is, the area west of the Jordan — that includes the Palestinian areas — would be militarily under Israel.”
— Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu

He’s said it countless times before in myriad ways. But he usually only says it in Hebrew. This week, however, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu said in English, and on camera, that under his leadership Israel will never end the occupation of Palestine.

Speaking at the Economic Club of Washington earlier this week, Netanyahu dodged a question about whether he supports a one- or two-state solution, and outlined a vision that sounds a lot like an entrenched and enhanced version of the occupation as it exists today.

Continue reading “Even in peace, the occupation will never end”