Week 20: The Ongoing Nakba
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Dear Kumi Now supporter,
You can download this week's newsletter in PDF right here.
On Tuesday Rochelle Watson and Jonathan Brenneman from Friends of Sabeel North America (FOSNA) spoke to us about the report that Israel receives from the U.S. government and Christian Zionists. The replay of the session is now available on YouTube and on our website. The website includes their bios, all of the advocacy options and instructions, and links shared during the gathering.
We would love it if you could share the session with your community. You could use language such as:
Last week we learned about the role that the U.S. plays in Israel, and how U.S. political support of Israel in heavily influenced by Christian Zionism. Our guest were Rochelle Watson and Jonathan Brenneman from Friends of Sabeel North America (FOSNA). Learn more in the latest Kumi Now online gathering. https://youtu.be/Hd-MRoHviG8
And as usual, If you would like to speak for up to 5 minutes in a future meeting about how you are using Kumi Now or otherwise advocating for Palestine, or to promote your own events for Palestine, please email us at [email protected].
Featured Action: Save Sheikh Jarrah in Arabic, meaning 'Memory of the Catastrophe'), the ذﻛرى اﻟﻧﻛﺑﺔ) Today is Nakba Day annual day of commemoration of the Nakba, which refers to the destruction of 1948 and the permanent displacement of a majority of the Palestinian people. It is commemorated on May 15, the day after the end of the British Mandate for Palestine, when the State of Israel took its place. Please read “73 Years of Ongoing Nakba, Palestinians Continue to be Steadfast against Israel’s Settler-Colonial and Apartheid Regime” from Al-Haq.
The image above is from PSC, who has a page dedicated to a National Day of Action. They have a webinar today, and additional webinars in the coming days.
Canadian residents: Just Peace Advocates has a page with a statement about the ongoing Nakba and an action that you can take.
There are several recent events you can watch to learn more about the ongoing Nakba and how it relates to the events happening right now on the ground in Palestine and Israel. They include: “Holding Palestinian Ground: Lessons from Gaza to Sheikh Jarrah” from Jadaliyya. “The Nakba & the Current Crisis” with Lara Friedman and Dr. Carol Daniel Kasbari from Foundation for Middle East Peace. “Nakba73: Memories of 1948” with Dr. Ghada Karmi and Dr. Salman Abu Sitta from PSC. “The Palestinian Nakba: What Happened in 1948 and Why It Still Matters” from Middle East Institute. And of course you can attend this week's Kumi Now online gathering, where we will address the several aspects of the Ongoing Nakba:
May 18: Week 20 - The Ongoing Nakba Full information on the gathering is here.
For Palestinians, May 15 is Nakba Day. That is the day following the Israeli Independence Day on the Gregorian calendar. The term Nakba refers to the 1948 catastrophe when over 1,000,000 Palestinians were forced from their homes or fled in fear for their lives. But this use of the term in the past tense suggests that the Nakba was over and done 70 years ago. This is not the case, as the events of 1948 were just part of a consistent and ongoing process that dates back to the Balfour Declaration and continues today.
Our guests will include a resident of the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood (to be named) and Epiphan Sabella from Department of Service to Palestinian Refugees (DSPR).
Time: Tuesday, May 18, at 6:00pm East Jerusalem, Palestine time (UTC+3) That's... Pacific (Seattle/Vancouver): 8am Central (Chicago): 10am Eastern (New York/Toronto): 11am Atlantic: 12pm Newfoundland: 12:30pm Greenwich (London): 4pm Central Europe (Paris/Stockholm): 5pm South Africa: 5pm Manila: 11pm Zoom Meeting: https://zoom.us/j/94679502800 (You might need to do a quick registration. This link is the same, either way.)
Remember, if you'd like to receive a reminder about the gathering an hour before it begins, please use the registration form at the bottom of the page.
And here's what we have coming up in May so you can plan ahead and decide how you want to be a part of Kumi Now: Coming up in Kumi Now Each week below will have an online gathering with a guest or guests speaking on the topic. The time and Zoom registration link will be the same each week.
The weekly newsletter will always contain reminders of the upcoming online gatherings and the Zoom link. But if you're like me and need a reminder right before the sessions begin, you can register to receive a reminder email one hour prior to each online gathering. And no more digging through your inbox looking for the Zoom link! Just use the registration form at the bottom of the page.
May 25: Week 21 - Preserving History and Culture Read the full entry online.
The United Nations celebrates May 21 as the World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development. The day was declared following UNESCO’s Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity, a document that clearly sees cultural diversity and tolerance as key to developing the dialogue necessary to achieve peace and sustainable development around the world. However, Israel continues to build and plant over Palestinian history and culture while simultaneously erasing it from street signs, historical markers, and history books.
For our Kumi Action we will write profiles of different aspects of Palestine culture and history and share them with the world.
Kumi Now Please note: To match the dates in the book, we will now be posting a new entry each Friday, and this newsletter should go out each Friday or Saturday.
Sharing and publicizing: The graphics in this newsletter are designed to be the perfect size and shape to share to Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. So each week you can help the cause simply by sharing these images online. It's one more option you have to help.
Kumi Week #20: The Ongoing Nakba Week 20 of Kumi Now is now available on the website. The groundwork for the expulsion of Palestinians began under the British Mandate, then accelerated with the Nakba of 1947–49 and the 1967 war. BADIL estimates that between 100,000 and 150,000 Palestinians were displaced under the Mandate, roughly a million were displaced in the Nakba, and another 400,000 to 450,000 were displaced in 1967. BADIL provides more of this historical context in their Kumi Now entry and explains why the decades since then are rightly called the ongoing Nakba, as Palestinians continue to be forced from their lands by Israel. Here’s what you need to know and what you can do so that together we can rise up.
Please read the essay on this issue and the story from Arij Abaeid. And here are a few more facts for you: Understanding the Ongoing Nakba: Just the Facts... Between 100,000 and 150,000 Palestinians were displaced under the Mandate, roughly a million were displaced in the Nakba, and another 400,000 to 450,000 were displaced in 1967. In Jerusalem alone, more than 14,000 Palestinians have lost their residency status and right to live in East Jerusalem since 1967. Between 2008 and 2012, 97.7 percent of building permit applications in Area C submitted by Palestinians were rejected by the Israeli authorities. Israel has confiscated or de facto annexed more than 3,456 km² (61 percent) of the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) for the exclusive benefit of Jewish colonizers. Since 1948, Palestinian refugees are denied their right to return and citizenship, in opposition to U.N. General Assembly Resolution 194, which resolves that the refugees should be allowed to return to their homes or be compensated. After 1948 Israel continued to confiscate land, often declaring it “state land”, so that by 1962, 93% of the land inside Israel was controlled by the Israel Lands Administration, while Palestinian citizens only owned 4% of the total. Today, Jews control over 85% of the land of historic Palestine (compared to 6.2% during the British Mandate). Since 1967, Palestinians have lost access to over 60% of West Bank land and two thirds of its grazing land, while over 2.5 million productive trees have been uprooted. In Gaza half of the cultivable area has been lost. Israel has destroyed over 27,000 Palestinian homes and structures. Israel has established 131 illegal settlements and over 100 outposts on Palestinian soil. Over 600,000 Jews have been transferred to settle in Palestinian territories, Residency rights have been stripped from over 100,000 residents of Gaza, some 140,000 residents of the West Bank, and over 14,500 Palestinian Jerusalemites. Nearly one-third of the registered Palestine refugees, more than 1.5 million individuals, live in 58 recognized Palestine refugee camps in Jordan, Lebanon, the Syrian Arab Republic, the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.
These facts are drawn from: “Palestinian Refugees” from UNRWA “The Nakba: 70 Years On” from PASSIA “Survey of Palestinian Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons: 2013-15” from BADIL
Learning More
Several recent webinars about the ongoing Nakba are listed above, in the box about Nakba Day. To go deeper, we are developing an extensive list of Additional Resources at the bottom of this week’s entry as well as a YouTube playlist on the subject.
Once you understand the situation you'll want to get involved. Here's the Kumi Action for this week:
Kumi Action Look up the street of the closest Israeli consulate or embassy to you and petition the city where the consulate is located to change their street name to “Free Palestine Street” to help raise awareness of Palestine and Palestinian refugees. Imagine the address of every Israeli consulate and embassy being “Free Palestine Street!”
If you are unable to change the name of the street nearest the Israeli consulate or embassy, get creative and take matters into your own hands! Commemorate Nakba Day on May 15 by changing the name of your driveway, private road, school walkway, local street, or hall. Post informational signs to help people understand the name and Nakba Day.
Take a photo of your street signs and post them to social media. Include a link to this page of the Kumi Now website along with the hashtags #NakbaDay, #KumiNow, and #Kumi20.
News
Important news going on in Palestine, Israel, and the diaspora, from trusted sources of news.
News It has been a busy and heartbreaking week in Palestine and Israel. Events are changing quickly, and the following is just a rough outline of what has happened. For a fuller understanding of events, there is a quickly evolving Wikipedia page on the “2021 Israel-Palestine Crisis”. Monday: Dozens were wounded as Israeli forces raided the Al-Aqsa mosque. It was the third day in a row that Israeli forces had stormed the complex. (Al Jazeera video) Monday, later: Hamas then fired rockets towards Jerusalem and Israeli forces responded by attacking positions in Gaza. (ITV New video) Tuesday: Israeli forces continued attacking positions in Gaza, during which a residential tower was destroyed. Hamas responded by firing hundreds of rockets towards different parts of Israel. (Al Jazeera video) Wednesday to Friday: Rocket attacks and Israeli retaliations continued. Protests and riots broke out and expanded across Israeli, particularly in areas with both Palestinian Israeli and Jewish citizens. Netanyahu declared a state of emergency in Lod, where the rioting and violence were intense. Meanwhile, solidarity protests have occurred in cities around the world. Saturday: The rockets from Gaza continue, and Israel continues to attack dozens of locations in Gaza. Israeli forces bombed a high rise building that housed offices of Al Jazeera and AP reporters, among others. As of today at least 139 people have been killed in Gaza, including 39 minors, and more than 1,000 others wounded, while 11 deaths have been reported in Israel. (Al Jazeera video) Mondoweiss published an update on Coronavirus and the conflict in Palestine. Palestine Chronicle streamed live coverage of breaking news on May 12 and May 10.
Opinion and Analysis Jewish Currents has been publishing “A Guide To the Current Crisis in Israel/Palestine”. Nora Zaneen profiles some of the recent casualties in Gaza in “They are not numbers” for We Are Not Numbers. You should also read and view the other recent pieces of art, poetry, and writing by Gazan youth that have been published by We Are Not Numbers. Yousef Aljamal writes “73 Years Later: The Ongoing Palestinian Nakba Shadowed by Apartheid” for Politics Today. Haggai Matar writes “Israel chooses violence” for +972 Magazine. Peter Beinart writes “Teshuvah: A Jewish Case for Palestinian Refugee Return” for Jewish Currents. MennoPIN published “Behind the Sheikh Jarrah Dispossession” by Jonathan Kuttab. Al Jazeera looked at “Gaza, India, Vaccine Inequality” in a recent episode of The Stream while another episode looked at “Where will Israel's assault on Palestinians end?” New Israel Fund Australia held a webinar called “Exclusive Briefing on the Latest Developments in Israel” with representatives from Haaretz, Peace Now Settlement Watch, Terrestrial Jerusalem, New Israel Fund, and ALLMEP attempting to understand the roots of the current violence. Dima Srouji writes “Living the Nakba, over and over” for +972 Magazine.
Publications This Week in Palestine has released their May 2021 issue, focused on "Palestinian Realpolitik". Washington Report on Middle East Affairs has released their May 2021 issue. The Instiute for Palestine Studies has released the Winter 2021 (#198) issue of the Journal of Palestine Studies. The Institute for Palestine Studies has released the Spring 2021 (#85) issue of Jerusalem Quarterly.
Get Involved
Featured Action: Save Sheikh Jarrah Here's what you can do from afar to help #SaveSheikhJarrah:
Contact Congress: Peace in Sheikh Jarrah Write letters to members of the U.S. Congress here. Rebuilding Alliance will follow-up with your offices and invite you to join a briefing with their staff.
In Canada Contact the Canadian Government: Letter Writing with Just Peace Advocates
Sign the U.S. Petitions Petition #1 Petition #2
In the United Kingdom UK citizens can write letters about Sheihk Jarrah and make sure their MPs get a copy of the Human Rights Watch report, both through PSC.
Palestine Portal has a full list of actions you can take.
And of course, the more you can share these with friends and online and get others to sign, and simply take notice of what is happening, the better.
Updates on how Kumi Now partner organizations and other organizations are engaging in the struggle for Palestinian human rights and equality, and ways that you can help.
This Week Sunday, May 16: American Friends of the Parents Circle and bereaved Israelis and Palestinians invite you to join them for an online candlelight vigil at 11am Eastern, 6pm Palestine time. Tuesday, May 18: Join us for the latest Kumi Now online gathering. Information is near the beginning of the newsletter. Tuesday, May 18: UN Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People will organize the virtual event on “International Parliamentarian Support to the Question of Palestine” from 10:00 a.m. to 12 p.m. (New York time). The event will be livestreamed on UN Web TV. More information to here. Wednesday, May 19: Al-Shabaka will host “Ongoing Nakba: Sheikh Jarrah, Gaza, and Historic Palestine” at11am Eastern, 6pm Palestine time. Register here.
Ongoing Campaigns NEW: Medical Aid for Palestinians would like UK citizens to email your MP about the recent violence. NEW: Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP) has a great form to help U.S. residents email President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris to oppose violence and evictions in Israel/Palestine. NEW: Middle East Children’s Alliance is holding a fundraiser for emergency aid for Gaza. You can contribute here. Those in the United States should sign this petition for Sheikh Jarrah, aimed at U.S. Secretary of State Tony Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, as well as this one. Canadians, meanwhile, should sign this petition regarding Sheikh Jarrah. Those in the UK can make sure their MPs get a copy of the Human Rights Watch report. Palestine Portal has a full list of actions you can help take for Sheikh Jarrah.
Organizations in Action
Kumi Partners Updates on how Kumi Now partner organizations are engaging in the struggle for Palestinian human rights and equality. Al-Haq published “Al-Haq Urges UNRWA and the ICRC to Immediately Establish Safe Zones for the Protection of Civilians in Gaza”. Al-Haq published a field update. Combatants for Peace held a Zoom briefing on “The Situation on the Ground in Palestine & Israel”. The event happened today, but if you register they will send you a link to the recording of the event. ICAHD published their “ACTIONS BULLETIN - May 2021”.
Other Organizations Updates, reports, and actions from the United Nations, governments, and other international organizations that relate to Palestine. American Muslims for Palestine streamed “Live w/Dr. Osama Abuirshaid on the recent attacks on Al-Aqsa”. Jadaliyya hosted “Apartheid Israel with Norman Finkelstein”. Foundation for Middle East Peace published their “Settlement & Annexation Report: May 13, 2021”. Foundation for Middle East Peace he’d the webinar “Top of Mind: Palestinian Analysts On Unfolding Scenes of Protest & Devastation”. Middle East Monitor hosted the interview “MEMO in conversation with Sheikh Jarrah resident Rasha Budeiri”. Mondoweiss published episode 15 of the Mondoweiss Podcast, “Palestinians under attack from Sheikh Jarrah to Gaza & HRW says Israel is an apartheid regime”. OCHA oPt published “Escalation in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and Israel | Flash Update #5 as of 12:00 15 May 2021”. OCHA oPt has published other flash updates and statements in the last few days. Find them on the publications page. Palestine Deep Dive held the webinar “In the Midst of Destruction – From Jerusalem to Gaza: Palestine Speaks”. Seraj Library Project released a video with information on their two new projects and how you can help.
Arts and Culture
Recent and not-so-recent films, books, music, and other arts related to Palestine, as well as news about festivals and other events Palestine Museum US released “The Arts of Palestine - Episode 5 - Zeina Barhoum with Mayssoun Azzam”. American Muslims for Palestine published “Turning Tables w/ Joudie Kalla”.
Short films from Palestine Film Institute This week, the Palestine Film Institute has a series of short films available for their ‘Film of the Week’. This include the 20-minute documentary “Naim and Wadee’a” from 2000, the 26-minute comedy “Solomon’s Stone” from 2015, the 17-minute “Strawberry” from 2017, the 15-minute experimental film “Ambience” from 2019, and the 13-minute drama “Roof Knocking” from 2017. You have until Wednesday to watch them for free on their website.
Praise for the Women of the Family by Mahmoud Shukair Mondoweiss has chosen Mahmoud Shukair’s Praise for the Women of the Family as their next book in the Mondoweiss Book Club. They describe it as “delightful novel set in the tumultuous time after the Nakba (the Palestinian exodus from what is now Israel), portraying the rapid advance of modernity and the growing conflict in 1950s Palestine. Shukair is one of the most celebrated and prolific writers of short stories in modern Arab literature. He has authored 45 books, six television series, and four plays.”
Read more about it and an excerpt from the novel here.
You Should Know
One or two people, companies, or organizations you should know, and how you can follow them online.
Noura Erakat Noura Erakat Palestinian-American legal scholar and human rights attorney. Erakat helped launch Jadaliyya (see below) in 2010 and is an editor for the organization. She has served as legal counsel to the House of Representatives Oversight Committee currently serves on the board of the Institute for Policy Studies, is a member of the Board of Directors for the Trans-Arab Research Institute, and is a policy advisor with Al- Shabaka: The Palestinian Policy Network. She teaches international studies and human rights at George Mason University.
You can see her talking about recent events on BBC World News. and CNN. You can find a full list of her media appearances on her website.
She wrote the highly-acclaimed book Justice for Some: Law and the Question of Palestine, which recently won the Palestine Book Award. You can buy the book wherever you like, and find more information on her website.
She has a website and you can follow her on Facebook and Twitter. Jadaliyya Jadaliyya refers to itself as “an independent ezine produced by the Arab Studies Institute.” ASI is the umbrella organization that produces the Arab Studies Journal, Jadaliyya, Tadween Publishing, FAMA, and Quilting Point. Jadaliyya ( meaning “dialectic”) is a free multidisciplinary news organization founded in 2010. It features English, Arabic, French, and Spanish-language content by academics, journalists, activists, and artists from and/or on the Middle East.
“Jadaliyya is run and produced on a primarily volunteer basis by an editorial team and an expanding pool of contributors committed to discussing the Arab world and the broader Middle East on their own terms. Where others see only a security threat, conflict, or data on a graph, we see a region inhabited by living communities and dynamic societies.”
You can find Jadaliyya on their website and follow them on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.
What's Next
We hope to see you in the online gathering on Tuesday, after which you'll receive another newsletter next Friday/Saturday, focused on our next issue, on Preserving Palestinian History and Culture. As always, there is more to come!
Sincerely,
The Kumi Now Team
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