On March 16, 2003, an Israeli military bulldozer ran over my friend Rachel Corrie, a young woman from Olympia, with whom I had worked on several peace-and-justice issues. She was in Rafah, Gaza, nonviolently protecting a Palestinian family’s home from being bulldozed down in order to ethnically cleanse the area in order to make room for Israeli settlers to expand their occupation of Palestinian lands.
Her family and friends created the Rachel Corrie Foundation for Peace and Justice (www.rachelcorriefoundation.org), and this Olympia-based organization has maintained its people-to-people connections with people in Rafah and elsewhere in the region. The Foundation also works to educate people about the realities — and also to advocate for human rights and justice for Palestine’s oppressed people.
On March 16 of every year the Foundation organizes some kind(s) of activities to commemorate Rachel’s death and to lift up the issues we are working on. On March 16, 2022, a fascinating and well-informed Zoom presentation featured five experts. It was recorded. You can watch it here:
Watch and share this YouTube recording of Holding Israel Accountable: Remembering Rachel Corrie, featuring these dedicated and knowledgeable presenters who on March 16th shared their efforts and approaches in pursuit of freedom and equality for Palestinians – work with which we can all engage:
· Lubna Alzaroo, University of Washington
· Phyllis Bennis, Institute for Policy Studies New Internationalism Project
· Katherine Gallagher, Center for Constitutional Rights
· Josh Ruebner, Institute for Middle East Understanding,
· Muhammad Sankari, Arab American Action Network
And check this March 16th event post at the Rachel Corrie Foundation website for more info and resources. Thanks again to our event co-host, the Madison-Rafah Sister City Project, and to our terrific cosponsors!
We’re delighted to report that with 100% of our March 16th donations benefitting the Gaza Community Mental Health Programme, you helped us raise $10,000 for GCMHP, an organization that is guided by the principles of justice and human rights and provides inclusive, integrated, and specialized community mental health services in Gaza. Enormous thanks to all who contributed! In doing so, you honored Omar As’ad, Hajj Suleiman, and Rachel Corrie, in whose memories the gift is given.
From March 16th, when we mark Rachel’s stand in Gaza, through her birthday on April 10th, we count on your support to sustain the work of the Rachel Corrie Foundation for Peace and Justice and to maintain Rachel’s commitment to the people of Gaza. Thank you for helping! |