Monday, November 8, 2010

Protests Disrupt New Orleans Conference Featuring Israeli Leaders

Some fierce and courageous Jewish allies with Jewish Voices for Peace and a NOLAPS member disrupted PM Netanyahu's speech at the Jewish General Assembly in New Orleans today, Monday November 8th, 2010.

They have also created a young Jewish Declaration that you can read at: www.youngjewishproud.org.

Local News Coverage:
http://louisianajusticeinstitute.blogspot.com/2010/11/protests-disrupt-new-orleans-conference.html

youtube video interviews with participants:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IeEPo7FVjTc&feature=player_embedded

Coverage on Israeli and Jewish media sites on the event:
http://www.jpost.com/Israel/Article.aspx?id=194523
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/hecklers-disrupt-netanyahu-s-speech-at-u-s-jewish-conference-1.323644
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=332088
http://mondoweiss.net/2010/11/five-young-jews-disrupt-netanyahu-speech-with-call-for-new-jewish-identity.html

NEW ORLEANS SAYS NOT IN OUR NAME
NOVEMBER 7TH, 2010
DEMONSTRATION

"On Sunday, more than fifty protesters marched down Canal Street to the Sheraton and Marriott hotels, which hosted the conference. Organized and endorsed by several local groups, the coalition was brought together by New Orleans Palestine Solidarity, and the University of New Orleans and Delgado chapters of the General Union of Palestinian Students. The protest carried the message that "War Criminals Are Not Welcome in New Orleans," and several speakers gave moving speeches, including one Palestinian student who spoke of harassment at Israeli military checkpoints that caused a ten minute trip to school to take several hours."
by Jordan Flaherty, Louisiana Justice Institute

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and Israeli leaders Tzipi Livni, and Ehud Barak have massacred thousands of Palestinians, kept Gaza under siege, and continue to expand settlements in the West Bank.

This weekend they're in New Orleans, promoting Israeli war crimes and apartheid at the General Assembly of the Jewish Federations of North America. Prime Minister Netanyahu will also be meeting with Vice President Biden on Sunday.

New Orleans says NOT in OUR NAME!!

photos by Abdul Aziz.
www.thephotoaziz.com

Wednesday, June 2, 2010

NEW ORLEANS DEMANDS JUSTICE FOR THE FREEDOM FLOTILLA AND THE BESIEGED PEOPLE OF GAZA

March and Rally
Saturday, June 5, 2pm
Meet at World Trade Center Building at Canal and Poydras

NOLAPS joins our local and global community in outrage over the massacre of humanitarian workers on the Gaza-bound Freedom Flotilla. Below is a brief summary of the story, news sources, and action steps.

The Summary
The international volunteer-staffed Freedom Flotilla that set sail from Cyprus to deliver 10,000 tons of aid to the besieged people of Gaza was attacked in international waters early Monday morning by Israeli war ships and helicopters. Exact details are somewhat scarce, but as many as 20 volunteers have been killed and more than 30 have been injured by live Israeli munitions, as Israeli commandos dropped down onto the ships from helicopters and opened fire on nonviolent peace activists. The UN Security Council has condemned Israel's act of piracy, and NATO has demanded the release of the more than 600 passengers Israel kidnapped at sea.

Hundreds of thousands are protesting Israel's actions in cities across the US and around the world, and New Orleans will join them on Saturday. Below are some resources that have offered excellent coverage so far. These news sources are crucial, as more mainstream sources are essentially releasing Israeli government press releases and statements as if they were objective reporting.

This news comes on the heels of more devastating developments for the Gulf Coast, where BP has failed yet again to stop the river of oil that is pouring into the Gulf at a shocking rate. The flow of oil may not end until August, and the first tropical storm of what's shaping up to be a deadly storm season has killed more than 115 in Central America. NOLAPS is fully committed to human rights for Palestinians, residents of the Gulf Coast, and all people, including the Right of Return, the Right to Work free of siege and toxic pollutants, and the Right to Self-Determination in safe and healthy communities for all people.

The MV Rachel Corrie, which was originally supposed to join the flotilla but was delayed by technical issues that may have been caused by Israeli sabotage (as reported by The Guardian) is now en route to Gaza with the full support of the Irish government, one of its sponsoring countries. NOLAPS joins the global community in demanding that the ship be permitted to dock in Gaza.

Additionally, please consider contacting the US State Department to express your concern for the victims of this attack and the 1.5 million Palestinians living under siege in Gaza. Details about the New Orleans protest are coming soon.

US State Department Telephone: (202) 647-4000 (24-hour number)

US State Department E-Mail: publicaffairs@panet.us.state.gov

In solidarity,

NOLAPS
nolaps.blogspot.com
https://twitter.com/nolaps

Online Resources
For the past two days, Democracy Now has featured great coverage of the Israeli Massacre and world response.

Al Jazeera English released a video Sunday night, shot by AJ journalists on board the Mavi Marmara, the largest of the flotilla ships. Their site has great reporting on the incident, and also the global protests sparked by the Israeli attack.

The Guardian has offered phenomenal reporting and is helping to dispel the ridiculous myth that the Israeli commandos who attacked the flotilla were acting in self-defense.

Mondoweiss has great coverage, analysis, and news summaries.

Electronic Intifada has news on (re)actions in Gaza, as well as analysis.

For up-to-the-minute info, Ali Abunimah's twitter feed and Mondoweiss' twitter feed have been invaluable. Sharine Tadros' twitter feed has a lot of info as well, and you can also always look for local and global updates on NOLAPS' twitter feed. (note: you don't have to be a twitter subscriber to view these feeds).

You can also find updates on Free Gaza's website (Free Gaza is the main organizer of the flotilla) and the International Solidarity Movement's website.

Thursday, March 18, 2010

Downtown Business Meeting Draws Protest.
by Jordan Flaherty

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

THIS WEEK IN NEW ORLEANS

PATOIS AND NOLAPS PRESENT:

Salt of this Sea

108m | fiction | directed by Annemarie Jacir | Regional Premiere

Friday | March 19 | Zeitgeist Multi-Disciplinary Arts Center |

1618 Oretha Castle Haley Blvd

Introduced by Tony Award-winning actor and Def Jam poet Suheir Hammad

Soraya, born in Brooklyn in a working class community of Palestinian refugees, discovers that her grandfather’s savings were frozen in a bank account in Jaffa when he was exiled in 1948. Stubborn, passionate and determined to reclaim what is hers, she fulfills her life-long dream of “returning” to Palestine. Slowly she is taken apart by the reality around her and is forced to confront her own internal anger. She meets Emad, a young Palestinian whose ambition, contrary to hers, is to leave forever. Tired of the constraints that dictate their lives, they know in order to be free, they must take things into their own hands, even if it’s illegal.

Flags on Fire:

(Re)Actions from New Orleans to Gaza

Art Exhibition | Works by Abdul Aziz

March 12—March 21 | Zeitgeist Multi-Disciplinary Arts Center

As the world’s economies continue writhe and geologic shudders shatter infrastructure from Santiago to Port-au-Prince, our global community is left questioning everything that once felt unbreakable. Working from a national context defined by privatization and occupation, photojournalist and activist Abdul Aziz explores two of the communities that define this new century: New Orleans and Gaza. As Iraq and Afghanistan reel from US occupation branded as freedom and democracy and Haiti begins its shift from after-shocks to shock doctrine, Aziz illuminates two worlds separated by thousands of miles but united in a common struggle for liberation and self-determination. In beautiful images of resistance and resilience, the peoples of New Orleans and Gaza set the flags of their occupiers on fire.

NOT IN OUR NAME!

Demonstration Against Louisiana Tax Dollars Spent to Support Military Occupation

Tuesday, March 16, 8:00am

New Orleans World Trade Center (at Canal Street, near Harrah's Casino)

From the World Trade Center building we will march to The Westin Hotel at Canal Place.

On Tuesday, March 16, the anniversary of the day that US citizen Rachel Corrie was killed by an Israeli Military Bulldozer, The Louisiana Department of Commerce and the Louisiana World Trade Center are sponsoring a seminar called "Doing Business in Israel."

The seminar represents the use of Louisiana taxpayer funds to encourage local investment in a state that is currently intensifying an illegal military occupation against the people of Palestine.

As New Orleanians, we believe our money should be spent on rebuilding, not war and occupation. If Louisiana is going to encourage investment in another country, they should encourage investment in a sustainable rebuilding for Haitii.

Please let us know if you can come, or if you have any questions, by emailing nolaps@nolapalestinesolidarity.org.

More Information About March 16: Rachel Corrie, a human rights activist from Washington state, was 23 years old when she was crushed to death by an Israeli army bulldozer on March 16, 2003. She was working with others trying to protect the home of a Palestinian pharmacist from demolition in Rafah, Gaza Strip, Palestine. Her parents are suing the Israeli state for the murder of their daughter, and the trial is happening right now.

For more about Rachel Corrie, see http://rachelcorriefoundation.org.

For a recent news report on Rachel Corrie and the current trial, see: http://www.democracynow.org/2010/3/10/family_of_slain_us_peace_activist

Sponsored by New Orleans Palestine Solidarity, General Union of Palestine Students - UNO, and General Union of Palestine Students, Delgado.

Saturday, February 27, 2010

2010 Patois Film Festival Schedule

Patois: The New Orleans 7th Annual International Human Rights Film Festival
March 11th-21st

This year Patois once again brings an amazing line-up of Palestine related films and events to New Orleans.

Below are specific Palestine related events and films.

For more Information visit:
www.patoisfilmfest.org

http://imeu.net/engine2/uploads/1/suheir-hammad-poet-palestine_2.jpg

http://sphinxmg.com/venticms/uploads/1259556716-sunni_patterson.jpg

Breaking Poems: An Evening of Poetry with Suheir Hammad, Sunni Patterson, Kalamu ya Salaam, and Michaela Harrison
Warren Easton Senior High School
7pm: PERFORMANCE

American Radical: The Trials of Norman Finkelstein

84m | documentary | directed by David Ridgen and Nicolas Rossier | Regional Premiere

Sunday | March 21 | 9pm | Zeitgeist Multi-Disciplinary Arts Center

American Radical is the probing, definitive, documentary about American academic Norman Finkelstein. A devoted son of holocaust survivors, ardent critic of Israeli and US Middle East policy, and author of five provocative books, including The Holocaust Industry, Finkelstein has been steadfast at the center of many intractable controversies, including his recent denial of tenure at DePaul University. Called a lunatic and disgusting self-hating Jew by some, and an inspirational street-fighting revolutionary by others, Finkelstein is a deeply polarizing figure whose struggles arise from core questions about freedom, identity, and nationhood.

From Beirut to Kyoto, the filmmakers follow Finkelstein around the world as he attempts to negotiate a voice among both supporters and critics, providing an intimate portrait of the man behind the controversy while giving equal time to both his critics and supporters.

Daggit Gaza

8m | experimental | directed by Hadeel Assali and Iman Saqr | Regional Premiere

Sunday | March 21 | 4pm | Zeitgeist Multi-Disciplinary Arts Center

Daggah is a spicy tomato salad made in Gaza that is traditionally pounded in a mortar and pestle. This short, personal film juxtaposes the making of the salad with a phone conversation with the director’s uncle in Gaza. Literally translated, “Daggit Gazza” means “the pounding of Gaza.”

SAIA Carleton Divestment Campaign

7m | campaign trailer | by SAIA-Carleton Divestment Campaign

Monday | March 15 | 7pm | Zeitgeist Multi-Disciplinary Arts Center

The trailer launching the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions campaign against Apartheid Israel, from the campus of Carleton College in Ontario, Canada. By Students Against Israeli Apartheid (SAIA)-Carleton.