Tuesday, April 16, 2024

Zeina Azzam, Alexandria’s poet laureate, whose parents fled Palestine, creates potent art from the devastation in Gaza- with her poem "Write My Name"

Zeina Azzam, the 2022 Poet
Laureate for the city of Alexandria, Virginia. (Courtesy, City of Alexandria/Jeff Norman)

April 14, 2024

Alexandria Poet Laureate Zeina Azzam first found it difficult to write about Palestine amid the ongoing conflict that started last October.

Now, her words about the children of Gaza have been translated into five languages and recited everywhere, from senators’ offices to churches, from vigils to protests.

Azzam says she was moved to pen the poem “Write My Name” after reading a CNN report about parents in Gaza who had resorted to writing their children’s names on their legs to help identify them should they or their children be killed.

More than 12,300 children in Gaza have been killed since the start of the Israel-Hamas war on Oct. 7, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. The UN agency for Palestinian refugees said that more children have been killed in Gaza in the last four months than children killed in the last four years of war globally... READ MORE https://patabook.com/news/2024/04/14/alexandrias-poet-laureate-whose-parents-fled-palestine-creates-potent-art-from-the-devastation-in-gaza/

[AS ALWAYS PLEASE GO TO THE LINK TO READ GOOD ARTICLES (or quotes or watch videos) IN FULL: HELP SHAPE ALGORITHMS (and conversations) THAT EMPOWER DECENCY, DIGNITY, JUSTICE & PEACE... and hopefully Palestine]

2023 Arab American news: Palestinian Cry from Gaza, ‘Write My Name,’ Goes Viral in Poem by Palestinian American

https://www.arabamerica.com/palestinian-cry-from-gaza-write-my-name-goes-viral-in-poem-by-palestinian-american/

Zeina Azzam's poem- Write My Name

Write my name on my leg, Mama

Use the black permanent marker

with the ink that doesn’t bleed

if it gets wet, the one that doesn’t melt

if it’s exposed to heat

Write my name on my leg, Mama

Make the lines thick and clear

Add your special flourishes

so I can take comfort in seeing

my mama’s handwriting when I go to sleep

Write my name on my leg, Mama

and on the legs of my sisters and brothers

This way we will belong together

This way we will be known

as your children

Write my name on my leg, Mama

and please write your name

and Baba’s name on your legs, too

so we will be remembered

as a family

Write my name on my leg, Mama

Don’t add any numbers

like when I was born or the address of our home

I don’t want the world to list me as a number

I have a name and I am not a number

Write my name on my leg, Mama

When the bomb hits our house

When the walls crush our skulls and bones

our legs will tell our story, how

there was nowhere for us to run

—Zeina Azzam

Sunday, April 14, 2024

driven slightly mad by injustice....

Please no more funds, weaponry, and support for war mongering Israel

Children stand amid the rubble of a building hit by an Israeli air strike in the centre of the Gaza Strip. Photograph: AFP/Getty Images The Observer

Dear President Biden.. etc...

Anne Frank & the Holocaust have been expropriated, abused & misused for decades to build anti-Arab, anti-Muslim, Anti-Palestine, anti-Iran armies of hate here in America.

Israel bombing Iran's embassy in Syria was wrong & should have been firmly condemned with ironclad disgust, not greeted with ironclad support for Israel.

Your support for Israel as "Jewish" shows people worldwide that arming religion with lethal weaponry is the best way to gain power: Please stop fueling religious extremism & bigotry here, there and everywhere.

Israel is in long term & flagrant violation of international law on multiple counts. Israel constantly seeks to control the narrative- the stories told in our newspapers and on our college campuses, to manipulate our elected leaders on all levels in order to gather up more money & weaponry for an endlessly cruel war on the native-non-Jewish people of the Middle East and beyond.

Many Israelis have multiple passports with citizenship & job opportunities in multiple sovereign nations. Helen Thomas, an amazing American hero to many, a trail blazer in journalism, was demonized in 2010 for daring to say that Jews should leave Israel to the Palestinians and return to "Europe, Russia and America". Was she really that wrong? Mileikowsky's family was from Russia, and he was a nobody in Philadelphia, but sure is a big fish in Israel as he bombs Gaza into ruin and rubble.

Israeli crusaders recently convinced our myopic Congress to stop funding UNWRA while terrorized Palestinian children starve to death in that Israeli-created concentration camp called Gaza.

I believe land grabbing Israel aims to destroy the United Nations- not just sabotaging respect for every refugee's inalienable right to return, but also totally crippling the rule of fair and just laws.

Universal basic human rights matter, and so does hope for a just and lasting peace based on the ruby red slippers of the Right to Return to original homes and lands.

Sincerely,

Anne Selden Annab

NOTES https://anniesnewletters.blogspot.com/search/label/Notes

CSM: Snapshots from Gaza: By sheer will, Palestinian women eke out a life

Israel bombs UN school in central Gaza twice in 24 hours... the school shelters a large number of displaced people, mostly women and children.

Settlers rampage through West Bank, burning cars and injuring Palestinians Palestinians in the West Bank faced large-scale attacks by Israeli settlers on Friday and Saturday, as cars were set alight and dozens injured

CNN: Israeli settlers storm village in West Bank and kill at least 1 Palestinian.

"... and birds shall return" The Deluge and the Tree poem by Fadwa Tuqan, written in 1967, right after the Naksa (ongoing israeli made Nakba) & remembered #Gaza 2024

17 children’s books for Arab-American Heritage Month - 2024 - Rebekah Gienapp [nurturing antiracism]

Christians for a Free Palestine just shut down the US Senate cafeteria. If our leaders don't let Gaza eat, then they don't deserve to eat lunch.

Eid Mubarak: Remember our brothers & sisters from Palestine in your prayers

Debating ancient Middle East history is a distraction from the death and human suffering now ravaging Palestine | Opinion in my local newspaper

Palestine Is Poetry by Sabrin Hasbun ..... "Grief and loss and violence and pain have been forced on us constantly, for over 75 years."

NBC News- Class destroyed: The rise and ruin of Gaza's revered universities

The indiscriminate killing, the manmade starvation and the bombing of aid workers must bring the west to a moment of decision -Chris McGreal

UN rights body demands Israel be held accountable for possible war crimes..."in just six months, more humanitarians have been killed in this conflict than in any war of the modern era.”

“From the River to the Sea.” A Poem by Samer Abu Hawwash, translated by Huda Fakhreddine "every whisper, every touch, every street, every house, every room..."

Dear President Biden- American taxpayers should not be forced to fund Israeli crimes against humanity

Palestine was not an empty piece of land before Israel

Dean Obeidallah: Two words [#FreePalestine] that made Ramy Youssef’s ‘SNL’ monologue historic

Israeli army destroyed completely Al Shifa hospital, Gaza, Palestine - Witnesses say hundreds of bodies were found inside al-Shifa Medical Complex and outside in the surrounding streets.

Easter Sunday: The Nazarene (الناصري), oil on canvas, 1993 painting by Sliman Mansour

Palestinian cartoonist Naji Al Ali's Handala & the Palestinian Diaspora

Easter Vigil for Gaza - Rev. Dr. Munther Isaac in Bethlehem Palestine 2024

A big reason so many of us are speaking up for Palestine is because we recieved Holocaust education not because we lack it: NEVER AGAIN FOR ANYONE

Palestinian artist: Rawan Anani “Women and Olive Trees- Jerusalem” (2024)

Land Day 2024 Palestine: In 1976 it was 6 unarmed farmers murdered by Israeli forces, this year it is more than 32,704 + Palestinian people murdered by Israeli forces, mostly women & children have been killed

Israel’s attempt to destroy Unrwa is part of its starvation strategy in Gaza

Hate is evil and leads to evil things. Please no more wars and weaponry for Israel.

1963 Martin Luther King Jr's I Have A Dream speech about equity for all still rings true: "Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children" https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/i-have-a-dream-speech

Where, after all, do universal human rights begin?

The UN Mediator for Palestine, Count Folke Bernadotte, believed that the Palestinians displaced had a right to return to their homes and wrote several UN reports to that effect.

"It would be an offence against the principles of elemental justice if these innocent victims of the conflict were denied the right to return to their homes while Jewish immigrants flow into Palestine, and, indeed, at least offer the threat of permanent replacement of the Arab refugees who have been rooted in the land for centuries."

Bernadotte was assassinated on Friday 17 September 1948 by members of the group Lehi, a Zionist terrorist organization, commonly known in the West as the Stern Gang

Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world

PALESTINE REMEMBERED

Saturday, April 13, 2024

CSM: Snapshots from Gaza: By sheer will, Palestinian women eke out a life

By Ghada Abdulfattah Special contributor

April 10, 2024 | Rafah and Deir Al-Balah, Gaza Strip

Wafaa Abu Irjilia never dreamed she would become a single mother.

Six months ago, she was a housewife, happy to nurture her growing family with her husband, Ahmed – her rock and “strength” – by her side.

Now she is a widow raising four children between the ages of 2 and 7 in a tent alongside her own two sisters and six other young relatives. “If I need to leave the tent,” she says, “I have to tread carefully so as not to disturb the others.”

Why We Wrote This

A story focused on

Resilience

In any war, women carry an outsize burden. The Israel-Hamas war is no exception. In these snapshots from the Gaza Strip, Palestinian women are holding families and communities together.

There is little time to grieve for her husband, “the kindest and most generous person I knew,” Ms. Abu Irjilia says. Instead, focus is on daily necessities: food, water, and the safety of her children.

“It is a huge responsibility on my shoulders,” she says.

Across the Gaza Strip, Palestinian women say they have been caught in a war of survival and adaptation ever since Israel began...

Israel bombs UN school in central Gaza twice in 24 hours... the school shelters a large number of displaced people, mostly women and children.

A view of destroyed UNRWA Palestinian School following Israeli attacks hit Jabalia Camp in Jabalia, Gaza on December 12, 2023. [Mahmoud Sabbah – Anadolu Agency]

April 13, 2024

Within 24 hours, the Israeli army on Saturday once again bombed a UN school housing displaced persons in the Nuseirat camp in the central Gaza Strip, Anadolu reports.

Eyewitnesses told Anadolu that Israeli artillery bombed a school run by the UN Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) in the New Camp area in Nuseirat, causing severe damage to the school.

There are no reports of casualties.

Meanwhile, a number of Palestinians were injured in a series of Israeli air and artillery raids targeting areas north of the Nuseirat camp during the past 24 hours, medical sources told Anadolu.

This is the second Israeli bombing on the school in less than 24 hours.

On Friday evening, the Civil Defense in Gaza announced that a number of deaths and injuries had occurred after Israeli artillery targeted the same school in the Nuseirat camp.

The Civil Defense said the school shelters a large number of displaced people, mostly women and children.

Settlers rampage through West Bank, burning cars and injuring Palestinians Palestinians in the West Bank faced large-scale attacks by Israeli settlers on Friday and Saturday, as cars were set alight and dozens injured

Burning cars and buildings in al-Mughir following the settler attack in the occupied West Bank [GETTY]

The New Arab Staff 13 April, 2024

Groups of Israeli settlers have been storming Palestinian villages, setting cars and buildings alight and attacking Palestinians, leaving one resident killed and dozens more wounded, as violence in the occupied West Bank soars.

Palestinians in the West Bank were on edge Saturday as Israeli forces patrolled towns and villages after hundreds of settlers descended on the village of al-Mughayir, northeast of Ramallah, on Friday and fired live bullets and set fires to vehicles and buildings.

The local mayor said that some 1,500 settlers stormed the town on Friday in a three-hour raid. Head of al-Mughayir village council Amin Abu Alia told Al Jazeera network that the attack was the “largest and most violent” the village had faced.

Overnight Friday, settlers attacked the village of Abu Falah, setting cars alight and attacking the residents, leaving five people injured, according to local reports.

Several villages were closed off by Israeli forces on Saturday, including al-Mughayir, Silwad and Turmus-Aya, local media reported. Settlers attacked Palestinian cars with live bullets near the villages of Atara and Duma, Palestinian news agency Wafa reported.

Confrontations between Palestinians and settlers near the town of Deir Dibwan took place on Saturday. Videos which could not be verified by The New Arab showed large groups of men accompanied by Israeli soldiers near the village entrance.

Since the start of the Gaza war in October, Palestinians in the West Bank have been subject to increasing violence by Israeli settlers, who are often armed and accompanied by the Israeli military.

Health officials say more than 460 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank by Israeli fire in the past six months.

CNN: Israeli settlers storm village in West Bank and kill at least 1 Palestinian.

From CNN staff [Friday April 12th 2024]

A view of damaged houses and burning vehicles after a raid by Israeli settlers on a town near Ramallah, West Bank on April 12. Issam Rimawi/Anadolu/Getty Images

Hundreds of armed Israeli settlers stormed a village in the occupied West Bank on Friday, setting fire to several homes and cars — and leaving at least one Palestinian dead — in one of the largest attacks by settlers this year, according to Palestinian officials.

The settlers attacked Al-Mughayyir village, east of Ramallah, raided homes and fired gunshots at residents, according to Amin Abu-Alia, the head of the village council. Videos obtained by CNN show parts of the village burning, with smoke billowing over several buildings and settlers lobbing rocks. Houses and cars are seen completely burnt up, with sounds of gunfire and clashes heard in the background.

Here are other headlines you should know:

More Israeli attacks: An Israeli airstrike early Friday killed at least 29 people and injured dozens more after troops targeted a house belonging to the well-known Al-Tabatibi family in eastern Gaza City, according to a local health official. Israeli forces also surrounded and attacked the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, wounding several journalists and at least one other person. And in the occupied West Bank, troops killed two Hamas members in a raid on the city of Tubas, according to Israeli and Palestinian officials.

Thursday, April 11, 2024

"... and birds shall return" The Deluge and the Tree poem by Fadwa Tuqan, written in 1967, right after the Naksa (ongoing israeli made Nakba) & remembered #Gaza 2024

Found online:

"Eid Mubarak.

Let me offer you this poem, which has been my talisman during these six brutal months. By our glorious Fadwa Tuqan, written in 1967, right after the Naksa.

Translated by Naomi Shihab Nye and Salma Khadra Jayyusi"

17 children’s books for Arab-American Heritage Month - 2024 - Rebekah Gienapp [nurturing antiracism]

17 children’s books for Arab-American Heritage Month

March 29, 2024 Posted by Rebekah Gienapp

April is Arab-American Heritage Month, so it’s the perfect time for your family or learners to read books starring Arab-American characters. (Though I’ll add the disclaimer I always do about heritage months. This is a time to amplify the learning we should be doing all year round!)

First, it’s important to clarify which groups of people are considered Arab-American. As the Arab-American Anti-Discrimination Committee explains, Arabs are united by Arabic language, culture, and history, rather than by race or religion.

While most Arabs are Muslim, most Muslims are not Arab. (For example, Pakistan is a majority Muslim country, but it is not an Arab country. Yet, I still found many children’s book lists online for Arab-American Heritage Month that heavily featured books about Pakistani-Americans.) There are also significant numbers of Arab Jews and Christians. There are 22 Arab countries, though the majority of Arab-Americans are from Lebanon, Syria, and Palestine.

Now that that’s clarified, let’s dive into these wonderful books!

Cover of Baba, What Does My Name Mean? A Palestinian girl with dark brown hair holds a key, tree, mosque, and other symbols of Palestine above her head.

Baba, What Does My Name Mean? A Journey to Palestine by Rifk Ebeid. Illustrated by Lamaa Jawhari.

Purchase from Bookshop.org (supports independent bookstores and my business!)

When classmates ask Saamidah what her name means, she only knows that it’s an Arabic name. When she asks her father to tell her more about it, he tells her that her name means patient and persistent. Her parents chose this name because her Palestinian people must have these qualities as they fight for their rights.

With a special key and a dove of peace to guide her, Saamidah is whisked off to Palestine, where she visits many special places, from the Qubbet Al-Sakhra mosque and the Church of the Nativity, to her Papa’s childhood home from which he was dispossessed. There are many ancient sites, delicious foods, and carefully created items to learn about. Through all her journey, Saamidah is encouraged to believe that one day the Palestinian people will be free. (Recommended for ages 6 – 10. Palestinian-American author.)

Wednesday, April 10, 2024

Christians for a Free Palestine just shut down the US Senate cafeteria. If our leaders don't let Gaza eat, then they don't deserve to eat lunch.

Eid Mubarak: Remember our brothers & sisters from Palestine in your prayers

Sunday, April 7, 2024

Debating ancient Middle East history is a distraction from the death and human suffering now ravaging Palestine | Opinion in my local newspaper

Palestinians search for survivors of the Israeli bombing in Rafah, Gaza Strip, Wednesday, Nov. 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Hatem Ali)AP

By The Rev. Sandra R.Mackie

As the massacre in Gaza continues and good people around the globe are demanding an end to the US sponsored genocide, efforts to distract us ramp up.

In Gaza, Israel is bombing homes and killing entire families, blowing up neighborhoods, destroying libraries and Palestinian history, bombing hospitals, destroying houses of worship, razing schools, blowing up universities, destroying essential infrastructure, and poisoning farmland. Meanwhile, apologists work to distract the U.S. public.

Paula Fredriksen’s Opinion piece (March 31), is obviously an effort to distract. In the middle of the global discussion of “plausible” genocide in Gaza, Fredriksen’s concern lies in the past; Americans who have understood Jesus to be “a Palestinian Jew.” As a Catholic who converted to Judaism, she may have a different interpretation of ancient Christianity than Middle East historians and seminary professors with whom I have studied.

Her premise seems disingenuous, an effort to distract from the important issues of the day. I tire of such word games, natural outgrowths of the Palestinian “deniers.” (“No such thing as Palestinians,” etc.)

Viewing history from a 21st-century perspective, Fredriksen intentionally overlooks the fact that people of the ancient world were subjects of empires and members of tribes. is obviously an effort to distract. In the middle of the global discussion of “plausible” genocide in Gaza, Fredriksen’s concern lies in the past; Americans who have understood Jesus to be “a Palestinian Jew.” As a Catholic who converted to Judaism, she may have a different interpretation of ancient Christianity than Middle East historians and seminary professors with whom I have studied.

Her premise seems disingenuous, an effort to distract from the important issues of the day. I tire of such word games, natural outgrowths of the Palestinian “deniers.” (“No such thing as Palestinians,” etc.)

Viewing history from a 21st-century perspective, Fredriksen intentionally overlooks the fact that people of the ancient world were subjects of empires and members of tribes... READ MORE https://www.pennlive.com/opinion/2024/04/debating-ancient-middle-east-history-is-a-distraction-from-the-death-and-human-suffering-now-ravaging-palestine-opinion.html

Labels

Tuesday, April 16, 2024

2023 Arab American news: Palestinian Cry from Gaza, ‘Write My Name,’ Goes Viral in Poem by Palestinian American

Sunday, April 14, 2024

Dean Obeidallah: Two words [#FreePalestine] that made Ramy Youssef’s ‘SNL’ monologue historic

Saturday, April 13, 2024

Why We Wrote This

Thursday, April 11, 2024

17 children’s books for Arab-American Heritage Month

Wednesday, April 10, 2024

Sunday, April 7, 2024