The Madison-Rafah Sister City Project (MRSCP)
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Apr 29, 2025
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We cannot call ourselves Progressive and remain silent on Palestine. ― Jewish Voice for Peace
A peace plan without Palestinian voices is no plan at all. It's a unilateral attempt to continue on a path towards instability in the Middle East, led by @realDonaldTrump and @netanyahu. Any plan must center freedom for both Palestinians & Israelis. Anything less is injustice. https://t.co/6VSvmQ5GRn — Rep. Mark Pocan (@repmarkpocan) January 27, 2020 Progressives…
Park Features Israeli Settlements, Private Roads, Many Pieces, and 14 Bridges or Tunnels 60-Mile Gaza Tunnel will be a Construction Marvel
Invest in Justice by Building Genuine Connections Image via Sacramento to Bethlehem Cities for Palestine by the US Campaign for Palestinian Rights WHAT’S THE CAMPAIGN ABOUT? Invest in justice by building genuine connections between US and Palestinian cities, towns, villages, or refugee camps through a sister city relationship. Sister Cities promote ties between community members…
Youth of Sumud, a group of Palestinians in the South Hebron Hills, believes and is committed to a peaceful, popular resistance as a strategic choice to end the Israeli occupation. Tom Hurndall (27 November 1981 – 13 January 2004) was a British photography student, a volunteer for the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), and an activist…
Why did the UK and US not react firmly against Israel for the killing of Hurndall and Corrie the way Italy did with Egypt for the death of Regeni? A foreign peace activist (C) joins Palestinian protesters for a demonstration marking the anniversary of the death of US peace activist Rachel Corrie (poster), who was…
CODEPINK, 1/13/20 On Friday, January 11, 2020, on the Beloved game show Jeopardy, Katie Needle of Brooklyn, N.Y. correctly answered the clue “Built in the 300s A.D., the Church of the Nativity” by responding “What is Palestine?” But host Alex Trebek responded “nope” and told Jack McGuire, who answered, “What is Israel?” that he was correct —…
Palestine Solidarity Campaign, 1/13/20 Thank you to the hundreds of supporters who wrote to Liverpool FC about our #BoycottPuma campaign! Amidst growing international pressure for sports teams to boycott Puma over their complicity with Israeli war crimes, we’re delighted that Liverpool FC have rejected Puma’s kit sponsorship offer. Please join the campaign and help get…
A Palestinian activist sticks a sign bearing the Palestinian name of Ein Albeida spring over an Israeli street sign with the name Avigail Spring, south of the village of Yatta near Hebron in the occupied West Bank on January 3, 2020. (Hazem Bader-AFP via Getty Images) Oren Kroll-Zeldin, Truthout, January 10, 2020 Recently, nonviolent Palestinian…
Overture Center 201 State Street, Madison 10 am – 5 pm Join MRSCP and other Madison sister cities, businesses, and organizations at the annual celebration of the rich cultural heritage within our community. Features more than 30 FREE performances throughout Overture by artists who call Dane County home, cuisines from around the world, and stunning…
Portraits of Immigrants and Refugees 502 Mark Drive Verona, WI 6:30 – 9 pm Family Diversity Projects‘ photo-text exhibit shares the stories of immigrants and refugees who have arrived in the U.S. from all over the world. The Jan. 12 reception features a presentation by members of Plymouth UCC who participated in a mission immersion…
Israeli activist Jonathan Pollack pens a powerful Op-Ed in Haaretz on his arrest, putting into context his act of solidarity with Palestinians who face altogether different circumstances than his own. The Ofer military prison near the West Bank city of Ramallah, October 2, 2009. (ASSOCIATED PRESS) Jonathan Pollak, Haaretz, Jan 07, 2020 I am currently…
The shoreline in Gaza City during strong winds on Christmas Day (Mohammed Abed-AFP-Getty Images) Hazem Balousha and Miriam Berger, The Washington Post, January 1, 2020 GAZA CITY — Jana Tawil was born in 2012, the same year that the United Nations released an alarm-raising report on the state of the Gaza Strip: If the prevailing…
“Accountability has, until now, been largely missing in action” during Israel’s 52-year occupation, said UN Special Rapporteur Michael Lynk People run through tear gas carrying an injured woman on May 15, 2018 in Gaza City, Gaza. (Photo: Spencer Platt/Getty Images) Jessica Corbett, Common Dreams, December 31, 2019 A United Nations human rights researcher on Tuesday…
Best Photos of 2019 from MECA We are now more than halfway to providing another water filter system to a school in Rafah, Palestine. If you have contributed to this project, thank you. If you have not yet contributed, please consider an end-of-year donation to help us raise the balance of the $16,000 needed to…
Mahmoud Nawajaa, BDSMovement.net The anti-Palestinian Trump Administration and Boris Johnson government are more than ever directly engaged in Israel’s desperate war of repression on advocacy for Palestinian rights and the BDS movement in particular. Thanks to your support, our BDS movement for freedom, justice and equality continued to grow in scale and impact in 2019.…
Twelve-year-old Mohammed Al-Najar was shot in his eye by Israeli soldiers [Getty] Tareq Hajjaj and Pam Bailey, The New Arab — Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, 20 December, 2019 To date, Gaza's Ministry of Health reports that 50 protesters have been shot in the eye by Israeli soldiers since the demonstrations began last March leaving them permanently blind.…
Canadian Boat to Gaza, December 20, 2019 Freedom Flotilla sailors and participants are sometimes asked: Why do you keep sailing toward Gaza only to be captured? Why not give the funds you raise directly to the Palestinians of Gaza as aid? Our rationale for sailing and our experiences in 2018 provide some answers. Our Palestinian…
Israel Social TV is an independent media organization working to promote social change, human rights and equality. “We use the unique power of visual documentation, where intellectual arguments alone might fail to change the hearts and minds of people, promoting human rights and bringing about social change in Israel.” Hiba al-Labadi, a Palestinian with Jordanian…
A man holds the hand of Maria al-Gazali, a 14-month-old Palestinian baby, as her body lies on a stretcher at a hospital in Beit Lahia, northern Gaza on 5 May 2019. She died during an Israeli air strike (AFP) David Hearst, Middle East Eye, 13 December 2019 I would like you to try an exercise.…
UNC-Chapel Hill Students for Justice in Palestine, December 24, 2012. (Photo: Facebook) Josh Ruebner, Mondoweiss, December 12, 2019 President Trump signed yesterday an Executive Order empowering the federal government to crack down on campus organizing for Palestinian rights under the guise of combating antisemitism. “This is our message to universities: If you want to accept…
After a week of antisemitic speech, today Donald Trump is signing an executive order to withhold money from college campuses that tolerate “anti-Israel” movements As a Jewish college student, I know that Trump’s order isn’t meant to keep me safe – it’s meant to silence human rights advocates and, in particular, Palestinian and Muslim students.…
US Campaign for Palestinian Rights, December 6, 2019 Today Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib took a principled stand against H. Res. 326, a resolution that will only help perpetuate the unjust status quo in Palestine/Israel and provide cover for Israel’s ongoing violations of Palestinian rights. Share these social media links widely: Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Thank Rep.…
Madison, WI 1:00 — 3:00 pm RSVP for directions Please join us as we welcome Ms. Laila Hassan of the Women in Hebron crafts cooperative to Madison, where she will be displaying and selling some of the crafts made by the women of the Hebron area. Women in Hebron plays a vital role in…
Dr. James J. Zogby, Arab American Institute, NOVEMBER 23, 2019 After years of investigation and months of delay, Israel’s Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit formally indicted Benjamin Netanyahu for crimes ranging from his violation of public trust to bribery and fraud. Israel’s apologists will argue that the fact that a sitting Prime Minister has been charged…
We Are Not Numbers video being shown in Washington, DC When Israeli snipers target people participating in or even located near Gaza’s Great Return March, it’s not just their bodies they kill or maim, it’s their dreams. This is the story of Alaa al-Dali. Thank you to the Freedom Flotilla Coalition for its support and…
American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, November 25, 2019 Washington, D.C. | November 24, 2019 | adc.org — The targeting of human rights and peace activists by Israel continues to reflect the fact that it is indeed an apartheid state with complete disregard for international and human rights. Recently Israel has ramped up their denial of entry of peace activists and continues…
With 43 Olympic swimming pools of sewage flowing from Gaza daily, local epidemic is only a matter of time A Palestinian boy drinks water from public taps at the al-Shati refugee camp in Gaza city, March 7 2018. (Wissam Nassar/DPA) Yaniv Kubovich, Haaretz, Oct 16, 2018 Illness caused by water pollution is a leading cause…
November 18, 2019 Washington, D.C. | www.adc.org | November 18, 2019 – Moments ago Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced that the Trump Administration will no longer view Israeli settlements as against international law. This is another step taken by the Trump Administration to thwart and bury the idea of a peace process, and further solidifying Israel as an…
Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI). (Photo: AP/Lauren Victoria Burke) Helena Cobban, Mondoweiss, November 14, 2019 Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI) recently told an audience in his Madison WI district that the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC), of which he is co-chair, is planning (depending on how Israel’s government-forming works out) to send a delegation to Palestine. “But,” he…
Palestinian children in Gaza. (Lucy Duncan/AFSC) Mike Merryman-Lotze, American Friends Service Committee, Nov 13, 2019 On Nov. 12, 2019 the Israeli military assassinated Baha Abu al-Ata, a leading member of Islamic Jehad in Gaza, and his wife—sparking more violence in Gaza. Shortly after the killing, Islamic Jehad fired rockets into Israel. In response, Israel has…
A man carries steel bars with bare hands in a yard filled with scrap metal. (Mohammed Al-Hajjar) Amjad Ayman Yaghi, The Electronic Intifada, 15 October 2019 On 5 May, Israeli airplanes struck targets in Gaza. The bombings came with the usual tragic consequences: 25 Palestinains were killed, among them 14 civilians. Four Israeli civilians also…
US Boats to Gaza is committed to human rights for Palestinians An International Coalition Of 14 Countries And Organizations Dedicated To Breaking The Illegal Israeli Blockade of Gaza 45% of the 2 million people who live in Gaza are children under the age of 15. 70% of Gazans are refugees from other parts of Palestine, forced from…
Palestinian Youth Under Siege and Occupation with Yousef Aljamal, Gaza Writer and Activist Sunday, October 27, 2019 2-4 pm Christ Presbyterian Church, 944 E Gorham St, Madison, WI Meet Yousef Aljamal, a young writer who grew up in a refugee camp in Gaza and lived through the three devastating Israeli military assaults between 2008 and…
Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network, Oct 28, 2019 Please take a moment to sign our latest petition demanding progressive U.S. presidential candidates speak out for Heba Al-Labadi, a 24-year-old Palestinian with Jordanian citizenship now hospitalized on her 35th day of an open hunger strike against her “administrative detention,” imprisonment by Israel without charge or trial.…
“We hold the Israeli government responsible for the lives of our citizens whose health conditions have severely deteriorated in illegal arbitrary detention,” Mr. Safadi, the Jordanian foreign minister, wrote. “We will take all necessary legal & diplomatic measures to ensure their safe return home. Administrative detention is illegal.” Israeli activists in a Monday protest over…
Original artwork and signed prints that were hand-carried out of Gaza. This auction offers over 100 pieces by seven artists who are struggling to share their vision and their stories with the outside world. Despite the ongoing eleven year-long blockade imposed by Israel and Egypt on the Gaza Strip and the violence and human rights…
Center for Constitutional Rights, October 21, 2019 Join us in court tomorrow in Olympia, Washington, as Center for Constitutional Rights Deputy Legal Director
Activists, who had arranged a joint event along the two sides of the border with Gazans, were confronted by employees of a firm building a security barrier on the Israeli side A construction worker tries to grab a demonstrator’s Palestinian flag along the Gaza border, Oct. 16, 2019. Almog Ben Zikri, Haaretz, Oct 17, 2019…
Octogenarian Israeli activist and four foreigners injured when assailants arrived with crowbars and went on to burn hundreds of trees Rabbis for Human Rights activist Moshe Yehudai, who the NGO says was assaulted by a group of masked settlers in the northern West Bank on October 16, 2019. (Rabbis for Human Rights) JACOB MAGID, The…
Documents seen by Guardian show fresh attack on university debate under the guise of prohibiting antisemitism Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu in 2017. First amendment advocates see the potential spread of such laws as a major threat to free speech on campuses. (Ronen Zvulun/Reuters) Ed Pilkington, The Guardian US, 17 Oct 2019 Rightwing activists are…
New campaign exposes double-standard of social media giant in dealing with Israeli and Palestinian incitement Dima Abumaria, The Media Line, 10/07/2019 Journalists, activists launch campaign against alleged violations of user freedoms by social media platform A Palestinian social media campaign rejecting what it calls “violations” of Facebook rules by censoring Palestinian content has been launched…
Literally the only thing Democrats and Republicans can agree on nowadays is that it’s bad to kowtow to China, but it’s good to capitulate to Israel. Billy Haisley, Deadspin, 10/8/19 At the tail end of First Take’s extended discussion today about the ongoing debacle between the NBA and China, Stephen A. Smith had one final…
Now Palestinians Are Demanding Answers “There’s no excuse for it. This is a war crime at the end of the day.” An Israeli prison service vehicle leaves the court house in Petah Tikva, Israel, Sunday, July 6, 2014. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit) Alex Kane, Vice, October 8, 2019 Samir Arbeed was arrested by Israeli forces outside…
Palestinian Center for Human Rights, October 8, 2019 On 8 October 2019, the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) sent an urgent appeal to the United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Mr. Michael Lynk, and UN Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or…
Democracy Now!, SEPTEMBER 12, 2019 GUESTS Noura Erakat Palestinian human rights attorney and an assistant professor at Rutgers University. Phyllis Bennis fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies and a member of the national board of Jewish Voice for Peace. NERMEEN SHAIKH: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is facing worldwide condemnation for vowing to annex…
Satellite image of herbicide concentration on the Israel-Gaza border. (Forensic Architecture report video) Rob Goyanes, Jewish Currents, September 9, 2019 FOR CENTURIES, the plains that comprise modern-day Gaza were lush with citrus orchards. Though early Zionists claimed to have pioneered the orange industry, Palestinian farmers had maintained orange groves—specifically of the sweet “Jaffa” orange that…
A Palestinian man waters goats and sheep in the Jordan Valley, West Bank, August 21, 2019. (MOHAMAD TOROKMAN – REUTERS) Gideon Levy, If Americans Knew, September 12, 2019 There’s no longer any real debate in Israel. The right wants to annex Palestinian land openly, and the center wants to annex, but deceive us. All that’s…