Palestinian Freedom fighters Speak in San Francisco
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by Ace Tafoya/PoorNewsNetwork Community Journalist “…beating on a tin drum marching to a sound, what is it I think? Am I beating on a tin drum marching to a cause when I don’t know what it is…” from Tin Drum by Toni Childs/David Rickets. On Friday, July 25 whilewalking to the St. Boniface Church in the Tenderloin to listen to two freedom fighters from Palestine endorsed by POWER (People Organized to Win Employment Rights), St. Peters Housing Committee, The SF Day Labor Program and the Coalition on Homelessness, I asked myself why I chose to do an assignment that I had no knowledge of! I browsed the web, talked to friends, looked through periodicals and even searched through Golden Gate Park for an answer or solution to the Middle East. Why is there no peace? Why do people kill? Is it for piece of land? Piece of freedom? Piece of mind? Peace? “Palestinian’s don’t have a right to move inside our own country,” proclaimed Maha Nassar, a national heroine of the Union of Palestinian Women Committees, an organization that’s a leading role on the Palestinian freedom struggle. “Our basic rights, our schools are being destroyed by the occupation!” The Union of Palestian Women Committees works actively towards building a Palestine civil, progressive and democratic society regarding all kinds of discrimination and able to raise the situation of women and empower them to assure the real quality between man and woman and all the sectors of society, according to the press release. Some of the activities produced by the committee are Intro duce refugee women to rights they were deprived of, Supporting women political prisoners in their struggle against jail’s administration, Establishing Kindergartens and Nurseries to reduce women family worries and reinforce the principles of democracy in decision making. “For 53 years people are still living in refugee camps in oppression,” voiced Ala Al Azzeh, a Palestinian refugee and co-founder of Beit Jibrin Cultural Center-Handal. (A progressive educational youth and community center). His dark eyes searched the room, he continued. “Racism is here, Racism in Palestine is the same. Israel is a white European country in the Middle East!” Both Maha Nassar and Ala Al Azzeh had just completed a 6 city grassroots tour across the nation. San Francisco was their final destination. Still I had no answer to why can’t we all live in peace. Maybe if we follow their ideas we can come up with an answer. Love and acceptance of a god is something we’re looking for. Why can’t more love go out to the Middle East? And here as well. |