Palestine IS Personal... a note from Nancy, a very Concerned Palestinian American Citizen

 

The Beauty of Palestine

About all that we can do to stop the genocide is to write to our representatives.

I urge all Palestinian-Americans to do so. Include a bit of your personal history. It doesn't even take long as we know our histories and are united in our revulsion of seeing most of our representatives do little to stop the slaughter. I've sent edited versions of this to my congressman and senators, also.

 

Dear President Biden,

 

I am a Palestinian-American Christian. 

 

My father immigrated to the US in 1951. He is from Ramallah, Palestine, which was a predominantly Christian village until an influx of Palestinians sought refuge in Ramallah in 1948 because of the ethnic cleansing which took place throughout Palestine at the hands of the Zionist gangs. And no, it was not a result of the Arab armies; according to Dr. Salman Abu Sitta, a prominent Palestinian writer and engineer, fully two-thirds of Palestinians were expelled from their towns and villages before any Arab armies entered Palestine. Israel assured that no Palestinians would return by demolishing over four hundred villages and towns. See a pattern here?

 

I was impressed with your reading of poetry and thought that you were a good guy. I no longer feel that way. I am appalled that in your position you won't call off the wholesale slaughter of Palestinian babies and children, women and men. My God, they are without fuel, water, food. Religious institutions and hospitals, doctors, health care workers, ambulance drivers and responders are targeted. Your lack of action is repugnant and criminal. I've never felt more ashamed to be an American than I am now.

 

In spite of the anguish of witnessing trembling children and mourning parents; in spite of the desire to just give in to hopelessness and despair, I still urge you to demand a ceasefire and to learn about the history of Palestine so that you know that Palestinian actions did not occur out of nowhere. 

 

You can still make right seventy-five years of colonization, oppression, and dehumanization of Palestinians. I urge you to do so for the sake of humanity, for the sake of us all: Jews, Palestinians, Muslims, Christians.

 

Sincerely,

Nancy Harb Almendras

Concerned Palestinian American Citizen  

Stop the Genocide

 

Art by Prominent Palestinian Artist- Mamoun Al Shayeb

Recipe for Being Palestinian- a poem by Alia Yunis

 

Palestine

Some (but not all) Reasonable & Honest Voices Worth Following on X [TWITTER] for Peace & Palestine ...

Israeli Occupation- Gaza, Palestine 2023

James J. Zogby

@jjz1600

Don’t quibble w/ me about the meaning of genocide. If this isn’t genocide, then what is? Palestinians were expelled to Gaza in 48 & now they are being devastated one more time. What Hamas did was inexcusable, but what Israel has been doing & is doing now is also inexcusable

 

If Americans Knew

@ifamericansknew

A 3-minute video from 2006 examining the situation in the #Gaza Strip after Israel's disengagement. The video shows that there was already an Israeli blockade of Gaza in 2002 - years before Hamas headed up the government. For more info on Gaza, see https://iakn.us/GazaFacts https://youtu.be/jZW_bThwK0I?si

Noura Erakat

@4noura

If a single Jewish-Israeli child were pulled out from beneath a pile of rubble of what used to be her home & obliterated the rest of her family, not a single Western gov’t would not condemn it or try to blame “both sides”. Racism & colonialism explain this. They expect us to die.

 

 

Omar Baddar عمر بدّار

@OmarBaddar

Palestine/Israel remains the ONLY contemporary context in which media discourse is obsessed with the invaders & occupiers’ right to “self defense” against the people they’re oppressing, but NEVER a word about the right of the occupied to defend themselves from their oppressors.

 

MIFTAH

@miftahpal

STOP THE ISRAELI AGGRESSION AND FACILITATE UNCONDITIONAL HUMANITARIAN AID.

 

@DrHananAshrawi

The Palestinians have been living with constant heart break & pain since the ethnic cleansing of Palestine began with the establishment of the state of Israel on their land in the nakba of 1948.

 

Dr. Omar Suleiman

@omarsuleiman504

A close friend here just found out all 21 of his family in Gaza were wiped out last night. Anyone with a phone in Gaza city just got a message from the Israeli army that if they havent evacuated, they are considered terrorists. They have nowhere to go. This is a genocide.

Husam Zomlot

@hzomlot

After the massacre at the Baptist Ahli hospital, the Greek Orthodox Church and the Palestinian Christian community in #Gaza are the target of Israel’s murderous air strikes! Enough!

 

IMEU

@theIMEU

Israel just demanded Palestinians evacuate the Al-Quds hospital in Gaza. 400 patients cannot simply evacuate. Neither can the 12,000 Palestinians sheltering inside. Israel has bombed hospitals, schools, churches, and homes. No one in Gaza is safe, no matter where they go.

Visualizing Palestine

@visualizingpal

Like any other community, Palestinians will not accept oppression in perpetuity. To help put the events of the last few days in context, here are a few resources you can use from Visualizing Palestine: https://bit.ly/vp-resources

 

Al Jazeera English reposted

Al Jazeera English

@AJEnglish

World leaders at the Cairo Peace Summit are trying to ‘de-escalate’ the Israel-Gaza war. Jordan’s King Abdullah used his speech to condemn the war crimes of collective punishment and the forced displacement of Palestinians 

 

Yousef Munayyer

@YousefMunayyer

Jordan's King Abdullah made the important decision to deliver these comments in English to make sure people in the West understand the dangers of their hypocrisy on this issue.

 

United Nations

@UN

Every child has the right to grow up free from violence and fear. Children must be protected -- always. They are #NotATarget.

#FREEPALESTINE

 

 

Update on Gaza October 20th, 2023

 - As of Thursday night, midnight Gaza time, the number of Palestinians killed in the Gaza Strip had risen to 3,785, including at least 1,524 children. By this morning, it may well be over 4,000

 

- There are many hundreds, even thousands, of people that remain under the rubble and are not included in this casualty count.

 

- 12,500 people have been injured

 

- last night, a building next to one of the oldest churches in the world was shelled, collapsing onto the church and partially damaging it. 16 [updated] people sheltering in and around the church were killed. This number is expected to go up.

 

- a staggering "at least" 30% of all housing units in the Gaza Strip have been either destroyed (12,845), rendered uninhabitable (9,055) or moderately/lightly damaged (121,000)

 

- 1 million of the 2.2 million Palestinians living in Gaza have been displaced; Israel ordered Palestinians to the south, but has continued to bomb in the south

 

- there is no water, no fuel, at least 4 hospitals—that was yesterday—have closed because they have no fuel to function. Several days ago, hospitals started operating without anesthetics, and medicines are critically low

 

- Today there are supposed to be 20 trucks entering but already there are hold-ups. Gaza needs 500 trucks a day to provide for its massive needs (source: former UNRWA spox Chris Guinnes). There are 3,000 tons of assistance waiting at Egypt's airport. Some people have started advocating for other crossings to be opened since Rafah is small and has been bombed numerous times by Israel.

 

- A pause in hostilities is required for any meaningful relief distribution, but Israel is refusing to stop its bombardment.

Before I Was a Gazan - a poem by Naomi Shihab Nye

 

Copyright © by Naomi Shihab Nye.

 

Naomi Shihab Nye gives voice to her experience as an Arab-American through poems about heritage and peace that overflow with a humanitarian spirit.

POETS.ORG

Find and share the perfect poems

Dear President Biden, What dirty secrets does Israel have on you?

 October 20, 2023

Dear President Biden,

What dirty secrets does Israel have on you?  I am just trying to figure out how you can be so clueless and cruel when it comes to the Israel/Palestine situation.

HAMAS did not invent or unleash pure, unadulterated evil as you said in your most recent speech. HAMAS is a more recent evil response to Jews-preferred Israel's extensive mistreatment of the indigenous non-Jewish men, women, and children of historic Palestine.  

The unleashing of pure unadulterated evil in the Middle East is and has been modern man-made Israel, a fully sovereign nation state that has been aggressively persecuting, impoverishing, and displacing Palestinian families for the past 75 years.

Armed religious extremism and a growing tide of racist hate is an inevitable reaction to Israel being richly rewarded by America for arming religion with lethal weaponry. 

HAMAS is horrible and stupid, but Israel's state sponsored terrorism is a billion times more monstrous than HAMAS.

Here in America various deluded CEOs and bigoted billionaires are doing what they can to silence support for Palestine and the truth.  Our mainstream media has become a mouthpiece for a foreign country instead of being America's Fourth Estate. And I go to White House.gov and I might as well be looking at an Israeli government propaganda site.  

I know that early on in our history American racism was rampant and wrong. Slavery was everywhere and technically legal. But that did not make slavery right or good. Thankfully we had courageous heroes speak out to help lead us away from legalized racist injustice and segregation. Our country grew stronger and better thanks to our learned respect for diversity and the rule of fair and just laws.  

So why exactly are we arming Israel as it traps and bombs Palestinians in the concentration camp called Gaza?  

Why are we funding Israel's belligerent occupation and illegal settlements in the West Bank?  

Why isn't America standing up for real justice and peace! 

Sincerely,

Anne Selden Annab

American Homemaker & Poet

Live by the Golden Rule

Christians Killed by Israeli Bombing of One of the Oldest Churches in Historic Palestine- Saint Porphyrius Orthodox Church

 

America, Do we believe in full and equal rights for all people, regardless of their supposed race or religion? !!!

 

We’re anti-Zionist Jews and we see genocide unfolding in Gaza- Ellen Brotsky and Ariel Koren

"Israeli supporters thirst for these lies. They do not want to know the truth. The truth would force them to examine their racism, self-delusion and complicity in oppression, murder and genocide." Chris Hedges

Think of Others- a poem by Mahmoud Darwish [of Palestine]

BEWARE: Don't let Racist Hate win ... a poem

"It lifted my grieving heart to join crowds in London on the March for Palestine. We need more of them" - a timely Guardian op-ed by Nimer Sultany

MIFTAH's Chairperson Dr. Hanan Ashrawi sends a message to the world.

WHAT YOU BOMB a poem by VIJAY PRASHAD

In Israel's war against the Palestinians, Tel Aviv controls the narrative and silences dissenting voices

In one week, the number of children killed in Gaza has surpassed the number of children killed in Ukraine in one year. Both are occupied lands, but with vastly different approaches from the US.

His name is Wadie Al Fayoume. He was just killed- murdered at the age of 6 for being Palestinian and Muslim in America... Stabbed 26 times in his Chicago area home.

Pamela Olson's book (and blog) that aims to bring the realities in Palestine to the American mainstream

This Week in Palestine: When Art and Artists Belong Ismail Shammout, an Ambassador of Palestinian Identity By Bashar Shammout

Memory of Places by Sliman Mansour, 2009.

Heba Zagout, artist, killed by Israeli bombs in Gaza, Palestine, October 2023

HATE, it has caused a lot of problems in this world, but it has not solved one yet- Maya Angelou

When will our consciences grow so tender that we will act to prevent human misery rather than avenge it?

We need facts and the preservation of press freedom.

STOP DOMESTIC VIOLENCE... & State Sponsored Terrorism

Christians Killed by Israeli Bombing of One of the Oldest Churches in Historic Palestine- Saint Porphyrius Orthodox Church

The number of Christian’s killed in the latest bombing of the assembly hall of the Orthodox church is rising by the minute. Latest reports speaks that the death toll at the moment is close to 40 people.

Hanan Ashrawi

@DrHananAshrawi

No safety, no protection for vulnerable Palestinians in Gaza, even if they seek sanctuary in their churches. #GenocidalIsrael

 

Site of bombardment that leveled the Orthodox Church administration building and caused heavy damage to the historic Church. Utter devastation October 2023

 

Hanan Ashrawi

@DrHananAshrawi

Now wait for Israeli hasbara/spin machines suggest that Palestinian Greek Orthodox parishioners mistakenly bombed themselves!

Ahram Online , Thursday 19 Oct 2023

Dozens of Palestinian feared dead after Israeli strike hits Gaza Orthodox Church

A Palestinian girl was killed and others were injured on Thursday after an Israeli air strike hit Saint Porphyrius Orthodox Church in Gaza City, Palestinian news agency WAFA reported.

The church has been a shelter for hundreds of Palestinians displaced by Israel's brazen war on Gaza.

The strike left a "large number of martyrs and injured" at the compound of the Greek Orthodox church, the Palestinian interior ministry said.

The attack also caused severe damage to the church building, a WAFA correspondent reported.

Local sources told WAFA that the shelling also caused the collapse of another Church building housing several Palestinian families seeking shelter.

More casualties are feared trapped under the rubble, as rescue and medical teams were seen working tirelessly to reach them, the correspondent reported.

The Saint Porphyrius Orthodox Church is just meters from the Baptist Hospital, where the Israeli army committed a massacre last Tuesday, killing at least 600 Palestinians and injuring hundreds more... READ MORE

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

St. Porphyrios of Gaza, Bishop of Gaza from 395 to 420 AD

Saint Porphyrius, built in about 1150, is the oldest church still in use in Gaza. Located in an historic neighbourhood of Gaza City, the church offered sanctuary to people of various faiths over generations.

The Church of Saint Porphyrios is an ancient and sizable place of worship in the region. It is believed to be the third oldest church in the world. The original temple at this location dates back to 425 CE. However, the current church was built by the Crusaders around the 1150s. Historical records from the 15th century also mention its dedication to the Virgin Mary. It has been preserved throughout time and was restored in 1856.

 

The bells & cross of Orthodox Christian Church of Saint Porphyrius in Gaza

America, Do we believe in full and equal rights for all people, regardless of their supposed race or religion? !!!

Washington DC Capital October 2023 "Just as we demand an end to genocide in Gaza, we must put the same effort into dismantling the systems of Zionism, apartheid, and colonialism that brought us to this moment." JEWISH VOICE FOR PEACE Jews organizing toward Palestinian liberation and Judaism beyond Zionism

Dear President Biden,

Do we believe in full and equal rights for all people, regardless of their supposed race or religion?  

I ask because it is clear that Israel does not:  Israel has been investing in Apartheid and injustice, while falsely promoting the idea that Israel is a democracy and shares American values.

Israel uses public funds to subsidize segregation as well as Zionism's preferred "religious scholars"... day after day, decade after decade. That is not a good investment!!!

Making matters worse, Israel uses American taxpayer funds to empower religious extremism and a cruel racist war against the indigenous, native non-Jewish people of historic Palestine.

Israel believes that only Jewish people should be first class citizens in the Holy Land, with full rights, full freedoms, good jobs, positive PR and security. 

Israel wants to pull America into more and more war in the Middle East, using American money and bombs to destroy the homes and lives of the native non-Jewish men, women and children of the Holy Land.

Israel is not our friend.  Nor is our mainstream media right now, as it fails to notice and report on the very real plight of the Palestinians and the ongoing Israeli made Nakba destroying Palestinian homes and families since before 1948. 

Please don't trust Zionist propaganda- but do trust the courageous American Jews who publicly protest against Israel saying "NOT IN MY NAME" !!!!!  

Sincerley,

Anne Selden Annab

NOTES

Live by the Golden Rule

We’re anti-Zionist Jews and we see genocide unfolding in Gaza- Ellen Brotsky and Ariel Koren

"Israeli supporters thirst for these lies. They do not want to know the truth. The truth would force them to examine their racism, self-delusion and complicity in oppression, murder and genocide." Chris Hedges

Think of Others- a poem by Mahmoud Darwish [of Palestine]

BEWARE: Don't let Racist Hate win ... a poem

"It lifted my grieving heart to join crowds in London on the March for Palestine. We need more of them" - a timely Guardian op-ed by Nimer Sultany

MIFTAH's Chairperson Dr. Hanan Ashrawi sends a message to the world.

WHAT YOU BOMB a poem by VIJAY PRASHAD

In Israel's war against the Palestinians, Tel Aviv controls the narrative and silences dissenting voices

In one week, the number of children killed in Gaza has surpassed the number of children killed in Ukraine in one year. Both are occupied lands, but with vastly different approaches from the US.

His name is Wadie Al Fayoume. He was just killed- murdered at the age of 6 for being Palestinian and Muslim in America... Stabbed 26 times in his Chicago area home.

Pamela Olson's book (and blog) that aims to bring the realities in Palestine to the American mainstream

This Week in Palestine: When Art and Artists Belong Ismail Shammout, an Ambassador of Palestinian Identity By Bashar Shammout

Memory of Places by Sliman Mansour, 2009.

Heba Zagout, artist, killed by Israeli bombs in Gaza, Palestine, October 2023

HATE, it has caused a lot of problems in this world, but it has not solved one yet- Maya Angelou

When will our consciences grow so tender that we will act to prevent human misery rather than avenge it?

We need facts and the preservation of press freedom.

STOP DOMESTIC VIOLENCE... & State Sponsored Terrorism

We’re anti-Zionist Jews and we see genocide unfolding in Gaza- Ellen Brotsky and Ariel Koren

"Between 2000 and the recent wave of violence, more than 10,600 Palestinians were killed by Israelis, according to human rights group B’Tselem, compared to 1,329 Israelis by Palestinians — an eight-fold difference.

The decades between 1948 and 2000 are filled with tens of thousands more dead — largely Palestinians. The story of this conflict, the numbers clearly show, has been the story of overwhelming Palestinian death and displacement.

The vast majority of American politicians, now and then, have acquiesced.

Over the last week, President Joseph R Biden has said repeatedly that the US commitment to Israel is steadfast — “resolute and unwavering” — as 1,000 bombs are dropped each day. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken deleted statements, twice, calling for a ceasefire. As Biden visits Israel, it is critical that he immediately call for an end to hostilities. If he fails to use the enormous leverage he has to save lives in Gaza, those deaths will be partly his responsibility.

A US special envoy said that “no one has the right to tell Israel how to defend itself.” The State Department, in fact, has warned diplomats to stay away from the phrases “de-escalation/ceasefire,” “end to violence/bloodshed,” and “restoring calm.”

Most of our congressional representatives — of both parties — are no better: leading Republican Senator Lindsey Graham said this was a “religious war” and called on Israel to “level the place” when speaking of Gaza.

Representative Nancy Pelosi, our California congresswoman, has affirmed that the United States stands “unwaveringly” by Israel as it conducts its defense — which is why seven of us chained ourselves to her San Francisco offices on Friday as more than 200 anti-Zionist Jews rallied, calling for an end to US military aid to Israel.

The few who have dissented are sidelined: Representative Rashida Tlaib, for instance, lamented losses on both sides but called for an end to occupation and apartheid; House Republicans are seeking to censure her. Representative Ilhan Omar also mourned both Israeli and Palestinian losses but was lambasted for daring to question “unconditional weapons sales and military aid to Israel.”" ...READ MORE

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