This is the site for New Orleans Palestine Solidarity (NOLAPS). For New Orleans Palestinian Solidarity Committee and recent Palestine activism in New Orleans, see https://www.nolapsc.org. 

For a pre-Katrina archive of the work of NOLAPS, see this link.

a few upcoming events:

Roots Run Deep Here: A Reflection on Non-Violent Resistance in Palestine
A Multi-Media Presentation featuring New Orleans activist Morgan Bach
Wednesday, February 9 · 7:00pm - 8:00pm
Loyola University New Orleans, Miller Hall 114
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=108335925908079

Never Again for Anyone
A Discussion with Holocaust survivor Dr. Hajo Meyer and Dr. Hatem Bazian, chairman of the American Muslims for Palestine
Sunday, February 13 6:30pm
Community Book Store
2523 Bayou Road
New Orleans, LA

BATON ROUGE PROTEST: Solidarity with Egypt, Tunisia, and All Arab Populist Movements!
Saturday, February 12, 11:00am
Baton Rouge Federal Building, 707 Florida
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=142955859097106


You can subscribe to the New Orleans Palestine Solidarity email list by sending a blank email to:
nolafreepalestine-subscribe@lists.riseup.net

New Orleans Shows Solidarity with the Egyptian People.

Thank you again to everyone who came out and made Saturday's demonstration so special. Please do keep in touch so we can continue to plan further actions, by joining the facebook pages of the event sponsors.

Here is the link for the facebook page for the main sponsor of the march, New Orleans' Friends of a Democratic Egypt:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Friends-of-a-Democratic-Egypt/165223473525519

And here are some links for some of the other sponsors and supporters:

New Orleans Palestine Solidarity:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=298983175004

General Union of Palestine Students, UNO:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=86711630271

General Union of Palestine Students, Delgado:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=269274548944

Crescent City Anti-Authoritarians:
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100001287616925

In addition, here are some links to the excellent media coverage of the demonstration:
http://www.wdsu.com/video/26763840/detail.html
http://www.abc26.com/videobeta/?watchId=256d4a54-952b-4ae9-a8b2-001c98c19dc7
http://www.fox8live.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=23332%40wvue.web.entriq.net&navCatId=3

Protests Disrupt New Orleans Conference Featuring Israeli Leaders

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

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.

Downtown Business Meeting Draws Protest.
by Jordan Flaherty

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.

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







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.

Salt of this Sea

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

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

Palestine Vivre!

The French Heroes of the Gaza Freedom March

By Emily Ratner

January 6th, 2010

http://www.counterpunch.org/ratner01062010.html

From the pyramids to the checkpoints, we have had many victories in Egypt

by Emily Ratner

http://mondoweiss.net/2010/01/from-the-pyramids-to-the-strip-we-have-had-many-victories-in-cairo.html

http://twitter.com/NOLAPS

NOLAPS is now on Twitter

follow us for up to date event info and links.

http://twitter.com/NOLAPS

Freedom Marching in Circles While Winding Our Way to Gaza

by Emily Ratner

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2009/12/28-5

http://mondoweiss.net/2009/12/freedom-marching-in-circles-while-winding-our-way-to-gaza.html

also visit www.gazafreedommarch.org for more information on continuing actions.

NOLAPS, PATOIS AND ZEITGIEST
THANK THE NEW ORLEANS COMMUNITY FOR
SUCH A GREAT TURNOUT AT THIS YEARS
THE 3RD ANNUAL MIDDLE EAST FILM FESTIVAL

festival news coverage:

http://www.nola.com/movies/index.ssf/2009/11/new_orleans_middle_east_film_f.html

http://www.nola.com/movies/index.ssf/2009/11/post_26.html

http://www.nola.com/movies/index.ssf/2009/11/amreeka_a_pleasant_surprise_of.html

photo's by Haitham Eid.

Many many thanks to the overwhelming support and feedback NOLAPS
members have recieved on their ongoing photography show about Gaza.
For those who haven't seen it yet, the show runs through December 30th so make sure to
drop by and we LOVE and appreciate any and all comments and feedback.

The New Orleans Human Right Gaza Delegation

Photography Show

ON DISPLAY FROM: November 12th- December 30th

1618 Oretha Castle Haley Blvd,

Zietgiest Multi-disciplinary Arts Center

An Exhibition of photographs and videos from the NEW ORLEANS HUMAN RIGHTS DELEGATION’S recent humanitarian mission to Gaza.
On view nightly through December 30, presented in conjunction with PHOTONOLA, a citywide photography expo and Zietgiest.

FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

Zeitgeist, Patois and NOLAPS present:

UPCOMING NOVEMBER EVENTS

(of interest, sponsored and co-sponsored):

The Third Annual Middle East Film Festival

November 12th-22nd

Zeitgeist Multi-Disciplinary Arts Center

1618 Oretha Castle Haley Blvd

New Orleans, LA 70113

Featuring the following Palestine-related Programming:

OPENING NIGHT:

Thursday, November 12 @ 9:30 PM

SLINGSHOT HIP HOP by Jackie Salloum.

Slingshot Hip Hop braids together the stories of young Palestinians living in Gaza, the West Bank and inside Israel as they discover Hip Hop and employ it as a tool to surmount divisions imposed by occupation and poverty. From internal checkpoints and Separation Walls to gender norms and generational differences, this is the story of young people crossing the borders that separate them. Slingshot Hip Hop is narrated by Suhell, whose older brother Tamer is DAM's front man. After examining the roots of that group, we meet several of the groups they inspired, including PR (Palestinian Rapperz), whose members live in the prison-like Gaza, unable to leave to meet their fellow hip-hoppers in person. It's when the focus is on those injustices and hardships that the film is at its most powerful. There's a particularly sad segment about kids living in a refugee camp that put on an illegal rap show and wind up in prison on trumped-up charges. Featuring Palestinian hip hop artists DAM, PR (PalestinianRapperz), ABEER a.k.a. SABREENA DA WITCH, ARAPEYAT, MAHMOUD SHALABI from AKKA , etc. Winner Audience Awards – Beirut Film Festival, Doxbox Film Festival, Films De Femmes and Festival De Libertes. (83 mins. Palestine)

GENERAL ADMISSION $8, STUDENTS $7, FULL FESTIVAL PASS $50.00

CLOSING NIGHT:

Sunday, November 22 @ 7:30 PM

AMREEKA by Cherien Dabis.

Amreeka chronicles the adventures of Muna, a Palestinian single mother who leaves the West Bank in Ramallah with Fadi, her teenage son, with dreams of an exciting future in the promised land of small town Illinois. In America, as her son navigates high school hallways the way he used to move through military checkpoints, the indomitable Muna scrambles together a new life cooking up burgers (and the occasional falafel) at the local White Castle. Told with heartfelt humor by writer-director Cherien Dabis in her feature film debut, Amreeka is a universal journey into the lives of a family of immigrants and first-generation teenagers caught between their heritage and the new world in which they now live and the bittersweet search for a place to call home. Amreeka recalls Dabis’s family’s memories of their lives in rural America during the first Iraq War. The film stars Haifa-trained actress Nisreen Faour as Muna, and Melkar Muallen plays her 16-year-old son, Fadi. Also in the cast are Hiam Abbass (The Visitor, The Lemon Tree, The Syrian Bride), Alia Shawkat (Whip It), Yussef Abu-Warda and Joseph Ziegler. Shot in Ramallah and Winnipeg, this Palestinian/Canadian comedy won the International Critics Prize at Cannes; the Humanitas Prize and the Heartland “Truly Moving Picture” Award. Co-presented by Patois: New Orleans International Human Rights Film Festival and NOLAPS. (96 mins. Palestine)

GENERAL ADMISSION $8, STUDENTS $7, FULL FESTIVAL PASS $50.00

The New Orleans Human Right Gaza Delegation

Photography Show

November 12th- December 30th

1618 Oretha Castle Haley Blvd,

Zietgiest Multi-disciplinary Arts Center

An Exhibition of photographs and videos from the NEW ORLEANS HUMAN RIGHTS DELEGATION’S recent humanitarian mission to Gaza. Seven New Orleans photographers, filmmakers, organizers and human rights workers traveled in solidarity as part of this historic delegation to Gaza. Members of the delegation have published accounts of their trip throughout the world. On view nightly through December 30, presented in conjunction with PHOTONOLA, a citywide photography expo and Zietgiest.

FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

The New Orleans Human Right Gaza Delegation

Second Community Report Back

Sunday, November 15 @ 5:30 p.m.

1618 Oretha Castle Haley Blvd,

Zietgiest Multi-disciplinary Arts Center

NEW ORLEANS HUMAN RIGHTS DELEGATION presents a program of videos, essays and documents which accompany their exhibition of photographs by delegation members (on display throughout the festival). Seven New Orleans photographers, filmmakers, organizers and human rights workers recently traveled in solidarity as part of an historic delegation to Gaza. Since returning the members of the delegation have reported their “witnessings” on websites and publications throughout through out the world. They will present their collective and individual first hand accounts and documentation of the realities in Gaza including the videos PRISONERS OF GAZA and GAZA UNDER SIEGE by delegation members Jordan Flaherty & Lily Keber.

FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

Much thanks to Zeitgiest, LadyFriend LLC., and the Monde Noir Photography Collective.

GAZA INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY
FILM FESTIVAL
COMES TO NEW ORLEANS
November 15th-18th.

http://gazafestival.ps/

ZEITGEIST, NOLAPS and PATOIS: THE NEW ORLEANS INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS FILM FESTIVAL

are very proud to announce that Zeitgeist's NEW ORLEANS THIRD ANNUAL MIDDLE EAST FILM FESTIVAL has officially partnered with the inaugural GAZA INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY FILM FESTIVAL, the first film festival organized by Palestinians for Palestinians in the occupied Gaza Strip.

In solidarity with the people of Gaza, Zeitgeist will simultaneously present three evenings of films here in New Orleans as they are screening at the festival in Gaza.

Also on Sunday, November 15 and Wednesday, November 18, Zeitgeist will participate (via video conference) with the opening ceremony and Closing night/Awards Ceremony of the festival which are being broadcast internationally through Al-jazeera TV.

This historic co-presentation by the GAZA INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY FILM FESTIVAL and the NEW ORLEANS MIDDLE EAST FILM FESTIVAL is co-presented by NOLAPS and THE NEW ORLEANS HUMAN RIGHTS DELEGATION TO GAZA.

FILM FESTIVAL PROGRAM:

Sunday, November 15 @ 7:30 p.m.
GAZA INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY FILM FESTIVAL – PROGRAM 1

STRANGER IN MY HOME / JERUSALEM by Sahera Dirbas. Stranger in My Home – Jerusalem is the most recent work by filmmaker Sahera Dirbas, who lives in Jerusalem but hails originally from Haifa. It was released to coincide with the 40th anniversary of the Israeli occupation of the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) and Gaza in June 1967. The film relates the stories of eight Palestinian Jerusalemite families that have been turned refugees in their own city. They recall the events that occurred in the Moghrabi Quarter of Jerusalem during the 1967 war. Each family goes to see its house which was occupied in 1948. The houses are located in theBaqa’a, Talbiyeh, Qatamon and Mosrarah neighbourhoods of what is now West Jerusalem. Some of the families enter their former homes and have a discussion with the Israeli tenants currently occupying their homes. The film also includes an interview with the Israeli architect David Kroyanker who wrote books about these houses, one of which was turned into a museum. (50 mins.) THE SHIP by Ashraf Al Mashharawi. Peace activists decided to sail into Gaza in order to break down the unjust Israeli siege and deliver much needed humanitarian supplies. In August 2008 Paul Larudy and Greta Berlin along with their friends from California based Free Gaza Society started a campaign two year ago aimed at penetrating the illegal siege through legal means. The film documents the journey of the heroes who sailed across the sea in Freedom boats. (33 mins.) Screens with O CAMINHO (3 mins. Palestine)

Monday, November 16 @ 7:30 p.m.
GAZA INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY FILM FESTIVAL – PROGRAM 2

ARTHUR BALFOUR AND ME by Charlotte Cornic. What links Arthur J Balfour, the British Politician born in 1848 on a sumptuous family estate in East Lothian and Fatima, a young Palestinian woman, born in 1971 in a refugee camp in Lebanon and now seeking asylum in Glasgow? From the narrow alley ways of a refugee camp in Lebanon to the beautiful farming landscape of EastLothian in Scotland, ‘ Arthur Balfour and Me’ is a visual and emotional journey through history and the present, a personal story about how one politician’s actions continue to affect the life of a young woman from the Middle East. (11mins.)

25 KILOMETERS by Nahhed Awad. 25 Kilometers is a journey through the checkpoints and rocky roads of the West Bank. Starting in Ramallah, where the filmmaker lives and works, this short film documents her attempt to reach her family’s home in Beit Sahour (near Bethlehem). Inside the West Bank, Palestinians spend considerable time either being forced to avoid checkpoints or to wait in line. Over time these checkpoints have became a part of the daily routine of thousands. This routine in itself gives rise to some unexpected practices some people try to joke about the checkpoints, others feel powerless and even convince themselves that this is part of a “normal” life. Having had the privilege to leave Palestine from time to time, the filmmaker came to believe that one of the worst things that could happen to her is getting used to checkpoints, for this would signal giving up hope for a normal life and a future. (20mins.) THE EXODUS AND THE ODYSSEY by Bilal Shammout. "The Exodus and the Odyssey" is a journey through the eyes of a uniquely artistic Palestinian couple, Ismail and Tamam Shammout, depicting the Exodus and uprooting of Palestinians from their beloved homeland. Both Ismail and Tamam dedicated their lives to the Palestinian cause, and were also the founders of the Palestinian Artistic Movement. The documentary uses the couple's brushes and colours to vividly portray their experiences on 19 murals, to tell the world what they and their people have had to endure over the past 60 years. Recorded in their own voices, the film takes viewers on Ismail andTamam's personal voyage and immerses the audience in the spectacular sights and sounds of these world famous works of art. (45 mins.) Screens with AL ALMANIE (THE GERMAN) (3 mins. Palestine)

Tuesday, November 17 @ 7:30 p.m.
GAZA INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY FILM FESTIVAL – PROGRAM 3

ONE OF by Emad Badwan. One Of reveals the shooting of an emergency medical worker on January 7th, during the period which Israel declared a ‘cease-fire’ period. The medics were subject to no less than 15 shots while they attempted to evacuate the body of a man already sniped by Israeli soldiers. One Of poses the question: how would you feel if your loved one died because ambulances were prevented from reaching the wounded. (4 mins.) SABRA AND SHATILA by Hesham Jordey. The 1982 Sabra and Shatila Massacre of Palestinian civilians by Christian militiamen in two Beirut refugee camps during the Israeli invasion of Lebanon. The goal of Israel's action was to expel Palestinian guerrillas from Lebanon. To achieve this objective, Israel allied itself with several Lebanese Christian groups, including thePhalange party, who fought the Palestinians during the protracted Lebanese Civil War (1975 – 90). Following the U.S.-brokered evacuation of Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) fighters from Beirut, Israeli forces under Defense Minister Ariel Sharon allowedPhalange militiamen into the camps, ostensibly to root out further PLO fighters. Estimates of the number of women, children, and elderly who were killed over the next several days ranged from 800 to several thousand. Although no militiamen were ever prosecuted, Sharon — who an Israeli commission of inquiry later found indirectly responsible through negligence — was condemned in Arab popular opinion as the culprit of the massacre. (51mins.) FROM THE CAMP by Ahmed Al Mashharawi. If the bombs don’t kill them, the sea just might. The documentary film talks about Palestinian refugees in Gaza Strip living along the sea. The refugees survived the siege, but this time the power of nature is their enemy.Abu Ahmed had a part of his home destroyed by the sea Float and his poor family can hardly scrape by. They represent the miserable life of the refugees in their battered camp and the doubled suffering that the poor may have when they face the force of nature. It is a story of a sea and refugees. (15mins.) Screens with TO BIDDO (3 mins. Palestine)

Ongoing Coverage of Olmert's visit to New Orleans
(check back for more updates)

Taping Our Mouth's Shut to Scream Out Our Dissent
By Emily Ratner

http://www.counterpunch.org/ratner10162009.html

http://npntrumpet.blogspot.com/2009/10/taping-our-mouths-shut-to-scream-our.html

http://dissidentvoice.org/2009/10/taping-our-mouths-shut-to-scream-our-dissent/

Olmert visit sparks Palestine movement at US university
By Emily Ratner

http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article10840.shtml

Olmert's visit sparked protests

by Leah Askarinam

http://thehullabaloo.com/2009/10/20/olmerts-visit-sparked-protests/

Israeli Politician Speaks out on Middle East
By Brandon Meginley

http://tulane.edu/news/newwave/101509_olmert.cfm

Ehud Olmert Visits Tulane, CNN ireport
http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-341428


My first direct action as a means for social change
By A.M., October 14, 2009

The rhetoric of Martin Luther King and Mahatma Gandhi promoted revolutionary direct action as a means to social change.
Tonight, I participated in my first non-violent direct action. Though I’m usually passive and non-confrontational, I believe it is sometimes necessary to foster a tension that a community which has constantly refused to negotiate is forced to confront the issue. Sometimes issues need dramatization so that they can no longer be ignored.

Though I believe this, I’m usually not one to act on it. When others act, I have always taken on the objective role of a legal observer to ensure that protesters’ First Amendment rights are not violated. While I passionately believe in the issues folks are usually protesting, I often laugh at us as well and how crazy others probably think we are. Tonight, I was one of the “crazy ones.” I put on a new hat and experienced a powerful, deeper, spiritual, and emotional transformation. I gained a better understanding of compassion, oppression, and love for all people no matter what and gained a greater and personal understanding of the oppression of the Palestinian people. Through my direct action, I was forced to face an issue that I have known about but quite some time but had never confronted on a deeper level.

Over the past week, I felt called to act to challenge the presence of a war criminal in my city. Ehud Olmert, the former Prime Minister of Israel, was scheduled to speak at Tulane University in New Orleans. As the Israeli Prime Minister from 2006-2009, Ehud Olmert, waged wars on the people of Lebanon and Gaza, initiated an illegal siege against the people of Gaza, continued the illegal construction and expansion of settlements, continued the illegal construction of the apartheid wall in the West Bank, and continued the illegal annexation of East Jerusalem.

The United Nations Goldstone Report concluded that the Israeli military operation was directed at the people of Gaza as a whole in furtherance of an overall and continuing policy aimed at punishing the Gaza population, and in a deliberate policy of disproportionate force aimed at the civilian population. The destruction of food supply installations, water sanitation systems, concrete factories and residential houses was the result of a deliberate and systematic policy which has made the daily process of living, and dignified living, more difficult for the civilian population.

With Olmert’s scheduled visit, those who believe as passionately as I do about the dignity of the human person and human rights bounced around ideas of ways to challenge Olmert’s presence in our beloved city. While hesitant and nervous because I knew we would face arrests because the university was private property, something deep inside moved me to act. I expressed my desire to do something more with my classmate, Nikki Thanos, and we discerned together.

A group of about twenty of us started off with a peaceful protest with signs on the campus. We were interviewed and videotaped by Fox, WWL, and other news networks. The protest grew to about forty people. When the doors to the auditorium opened, about fifteen of us entered separately and peacefully sitting throughout the auditorium.

When Olmert began speaking, I placed a piece of thick red tape over my mouth that read “White Phosphorus.” Causing horrific burns, Israel has used white phosphorus shells to screen its assaults on the heavily populated Gaza Strip. Other activists covered their mouths with red tape stating other things that Olmert did not talk about during his speech. When Olmert started speaking about the importance of profits and political power for Israel over human rights, each of us, one by one, stood up and walked out. Each time one of us stood up, half of the room would turn around to look. Though not planned as such, this created a statement and made people begin to question the words coming from his mouth.

After leaving the auditorium, some joined in the larger crowd of protester. I went to the bathroom for a “costume change.” I put on a headscarf for the first time, a long black skirt, and a shirt covered in wet red splattered paint resembling the blood of the Palestinian people. Three of my close friends did the same. Coming from different directions, we all made our way to a space in front of the auditorium several feet from the protesters. With tombstones behind us stating the number of people killed by Olmert’s actions, we assembled figuratively as dead bodies on the wet ground in the humid heat. As participants exited the auditorium, they passed us. The environment one of the most hostile environments I have ever encountered. I felt more vulnerable and at risk of being harmed as I lay there peacefully that when I lived one of the largest and most dangerous slums in South America. Educated students yelled at me, called me a f***’in Palestinian and other slurs, spit on me, and one man tried to urinate on me. During the 45 minutes of laying on the cement, I prayed for each person passing and challenged myself to love each of them as individuals even if I disagree with their actions. I prayed for all of those who live in areas of conflict and for the education and understanding of more privileged people.

Had it not been for dedicated team of legal observers, about four people guarding me standing directly in front of me, and respectful police performing their duties, the likelihood of leaving physically unharmed would have been slim to none. When everyone had exited the auditorium, we got up, cleaned up, and headed home.

Back to our regular privileged selves, we no longer had to directly face the oppression and hostility because of what we believed. However, brown, disempowered, and poor people everywhere cannot just get up and clean up the way I did and never be oppressed in that way again. It is something they face every minute of every day and I am thankful for the gift of being able to understand this oppression from my privileged point of view and to have had the opportunity to be in so solidarity in a silent and peaceful way with others tonight.