A Real October Surprise: JUSTICE

Last month, we shared the exciting news that Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez had withdrawn her participation from a memorial for former Israeli Prime Minister and military commander Yitzhak Rabin. Ocasio-Cortez cited her conversations with Palestinian communities and organizations in guiding her decision to pull out of the event.

We heard from many of you how glad you were that AOC made the right decision, but there were questions about why we were calling into question Rabin’s history as a “peacemaker.” So we created some graphics to raise awareness about the true legacy of Yitzhak Rabin, from his involvement in the 1948 Nakba to the crackdown on the First Intifada. (Click on the images to scroll through.)

And in case you missed them, we also published these explainer graphics on September 16 to commemorate the anniversary of the 1982 Sabra and Shatila massacres. (Click on the images to scroll through.)

Coming up in October

Coming Up in October
 

Justice is political (not humanitarian): What Palestinians demand for Gaza 

Thursday, October 15 1 pm ET/10 am PT

Justice cannot wait. Ahead of the second presidential debate, Palestinians in the US plan to reiterate this and other critical demands for justice: to end military funding to Israel and allow Palestinians their internationally-recognized right to return to their occupied homes. Congress’ responsibility to Gaza is political, not humanitarian. A humanitarian approach seeks to apply a bandage to a gaping wound that should instead be healed through justice in policy: ending US complicity in Israel’s siege of Gaza. Only when Palestinian voices are centered in determining their futures can their hopes for freedom and justice can be realized. Join expert Palestinians and progressive allies to discuss policy demands that aim to stop the roots of the violence on Gaza by removing US support for Israel’s ongoing violations of Palestinian rights.

Register to join this critical conversation. 

Creating a Future with Liberation for All

Palestinian American Community Center New Jersey Conference

Friday, October 16 6-8 pm ET and
Saturday, October 17, 10 am-1:30 pm ET

In response to the current heightened national and local conversations on anti-racism work and coalition building, PACC-NJ is organizing  their mini-conference on the importance of a collective fight for freedom that begins with internal community work and awareness and expands to organizing in solidarity with diverse communities. AJP's Sandra Tamari will be delivering Friday night's keynote workshop on Freedom is The Future and the role of Palestinians in the US in fighting for collective liberation. 

Register for PACC's conference

In Defense of Solidarity: Palestine on Campus
A Film Screening & Panel 

Thursday, October 15th, 8-10 pm ET, 5-7 pm PT

Join us  for a 1-hour super cut screening and panel discussion of Al Jazeera's The Lobby USA, a look into the counterinsurgency projects designed to disrupt Palestine solidarity movement building on US college campuses. 

Panelists include: Dr. Rabab Abdulhadi, Khury Peterson-Smith, and Kristian Davis Bailey-- moderated by JVP Executive Director, Stefanie Fox.

Register for the screening

There Is a Field - US Film Premiere 

Sunday, October 18 3 pm ET, 12 pm PT

AJP is proud to co-sponsor the Donkeysaddle Projects U.S. premiere of their new documentary film, There Is A Field, followed by a discussion with guest panelists, including Baraa Aslih (brother of Asel), Gwen Carr (mother of Eric Garner), Margaret Kwateng (activist featured in the film), Jen Marlowe (filmmaker), Raya Naamneh (Asel's cousin & activist), moderated by Nadia Ben-Youssef of the Center for Constitutional Rights.

ABOUT THE FILM:
In October 2000, a police officer shot and killed unarmed 17-year old Asel Asleh. His story is tragically familiar for Americans, but Asel was not killed in Ferguson, New York City, Atlanta, or Minneapolis. Asel was a Palestinian teenager who was murdered by Israeli police as he participated in a demonstration, calling for an end to the Israeli occupation and settler-colonization.

"There Is A Field" began as a play about Asel’s life and his death, told from the perspective of his older sister, Nardin. Through Nardin’s struggle to cope with the murder of her brother, the play offers a uniquely personal lens for learning about intersecting systems of oppression, including Zionism, Jewish supremacy and white supremacy—root causes of state-sanctioned violence and structural racism.

Donkeysaddle Projects (DSP) filmed a performance-reading of "There Is A Field" at the Peñasco Theatre Collective in 2018, performed by activists, artists and organizers from the Movement for Black Lives. "There Is A Field" film weaves together their performance with archival footage of Asel, and the activists’ own realizations of the parallels they see between Asel’s story and the experiences of Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) communities in the United States. The film, set in Palestine and performed by BIPOC artists and activists in the US, builds solidarity across intersectional struggles for liberation and decolonization, and is sure to spark conversation and connection.

Register for the premiere

Beyond Propaganda: Reorienting Anti-Pinkwashing Organizing 

A Community Conversation w/ alQaws and Adalah Justice Project 

SAVE THE DATE Thursday, October 22, 12 pm ET, 9 am PT, 7 pm Palestine

More information coming soon.