The Madison-Rafah Sister City Project (MRSCP)
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Apr 9, 2025
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The Israeli government limits building permits in Palestinian Israeli communities more than Jewish, and omits Palestinian Israeli towns from some government social and economic plans. Buildings without permits are illegal, and this is a commonly cited reason for demolishing Palestinian buildings. ― Second Class Citizens, 2016
State Sen. Leah Vukmir (Megan Papachristou Photography) Sandy Pasch, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Feb. 6, 2018 Legislation working its way through the state Legislature would prohibit Wisconsin businesses who sign on to the global Boycott, Divest and Sanctions (BDS) movement from receiving some state contracts. And, unfortunately, Assembly Bill 553 and Senate Bill 450 are attracting…
Brian Hauss, Staff Attorney, ACLU Speech, Privacy, and Technology Project, November 30, 2017 Ryan Rodrick Beiler/Shutterstock Kansas officials are scheduled to appear in court tomorrow to defend a state law designed to suppress boycotts of Israel. There’s just one problem: The state quite literally has no defense for the law’s First Amendment violations. The…
Israeli security forces and Palestinian protesters confront each other in Jerusalem’s Old City on Dec. 15, 2017. Glenn Greenwald, The Intercept, January 31 2018 A federal judge on Tuesday ruled that a Kansas law designed to punish people who boycott Israel is an unconstitutional denial of free speech. The ruling is a significant victory for…
Madison Central Library 201 W. Mifflin Street, Madison 7:00 pm Jewish Voice for Peace-Madison presents a showing of the film The Occupation of the American Mind. Co-sponsored by MRSCP. Israel’s ongoing military occupation of Palestinian territory and its repeated invasions of the Gaza strip have triggered a fierce backlash against Israeli policies virtually everywhere in…
Jan 30, 2018 — Dear friend, Tomorrow, 31 January, Ahed Tamimi, the imprisoned Palestinian teen, is turning 17. Unfortunately, due to the Israeli settler colonial occupation, she will be marking her birthday behind bars in HaSharon prison awaiting a military court hearing, forcibly separated from her mother (also imprisoned) and the rest of her family.…
Mark Your Calendars for Sunday Afternoon Annual Rachel Corrie Commemoration Featuring Dessert and a Program Time and place TBD 2018 marks 15 years since Rachel Corrie was killed by an Israeli military bulldozer, as she tried to prevent the demolition of a family home in Rafah. 2018 also marks the 15th anniversary of the Madison-Rafah…
Orly Noy, +972, January 24, 2018 By destroying schools in Palestinian villages in Area C and elsewhere, Israel is forcing Palestinians to make a cruel choice — between their land and their children’s futures. Students sit in a classroom at school in the Jahalin Bedouin community of Khan Al-Ahmar, West Bank, February 22, 2017. (Faiz…
Palestinian Journeys is an online portal into the multiple facets of the Palestinian experience, filled with fact-based historical accounts, biographies, events, and undiscovered stories. Together, they seek to craft an ever-growing comprehensive narrative which highlights the active role of the Palestinian people in crafting their own history. Presently absent from the global Palestinian narrative are…
Dear Friend, Last Thursday, the New Orleans City Council unanimously passed a historic human rights resolution! The resolution, developed by the New Orleans Palestinian Solidarity Committee (NOPSC), calls on the city to avoid contracting with or investing in corporations that consistently violate human, civil, or labor rights— including Israel. Now Jewish establishment groups are crying…
Last week I sent an email asking you to consider signing an open letter against the deportation of African refugees from Israel. Many of you did. ~470 faculty from our universities and colleges signed the open letter. Toda raba! Attached is the final letter with all eligible signatories. I made only one small but important…
You might want to write NPR thanking them and encouraging more coverage that includes Palestinian voices in their stories. NPR has been pro-Israel since the Second Intifada, when their attempt at evenhanded coverage incensed Zionists who threatened a national campaign to withhold donations. — Barbara Olson All Things Considered, January 19, 2018 Palestinians still have…
Open Letter to Women’s March L.A.: Women for Palestine Calls for Genuine Intersectionality Women 4 Palestine L.A., January 17, 2018 We embrace and applaud the intersectional analysis that marks today’s social movements, and decry the absence of this perspective in outreach for the Women’s March Los Angeles. In a shocking move, you announced that a…
Last month, President Trump announced his administration’s reckless, one-sided decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and eventually move the U.S. embassy there. Now the administration is threatening to cut off U.S. aid to the Palestinians — a move that would have disastrous consequences for the Palestinian refugees who depend on it.…
Petition Background On January 16, 2018, the US Administration made the decision to freeze millions of dollars to UNRWA in 2018. As the single largest contributor to UNRWA globally, this is an unprecedented and extremely dangerous decision that will cause untold additional trauma and harm to Palestine refugees in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank…
On the windy evening of January 4, 2017, 33-year-old Muhammad al-Hissi of Gaza set out with 13 of his brothers, cousins and uncles to make a living the only way they know how: fishing. But he never came home. The family was spread out in three different boats, with the waves choppy and stiff, when…
Ahed Tamimi in court 17 January 2018 (Oren Ziv, Activestills) B’Tselem, 17 January 2018 Remand in custody – even of minors – is part of the routine of oppression that Israel employs against Palestinians, with the full backing of the military courts, a system in which both judges and prosecutors are always military personnel, the…
Iyad Burnat interview by the Jersey Palestine Solidarity Campaign (JPSC) Dear Friends, Many of you know Palestinian activist Iyad Burnat, co-founder and President of the grassroots organization, Friends of Freedom and Justice (FFJ) in the West Bank village of Bil’in. Iyad and Bil’in’s heartfelt brand of peaceful resistance were the subject of the 2011…
Al Hirbawi, supplier to the Madison-Rafah Sister City Project The kaffiyeh is a traditional Arab headdress and a symbol of the Palestinian struggle. Today, it continues to represent an important part of Palestinian heritage. Unfortunately, the Al Hirbawi factory is the last remaining institution in the Palestinian territories producing the original kaffiyeh. Brothers Jouda, Abdelazim…
Supporters of Israel hate it when people use the word “apartheid” to describe the country, but we don’t have another term for a political system in which one ethnic group rules over another, confining it to small islands of territory and denying it full political representation. Palestinians protesting the Trump administration’s decision to recognize Jerusalem…
Israel’s Strategic Affairs Ministry had for months refused to divulge the list Blacklisted American organizations: ■ American Friends Service Committee ■ American Muslims for Palestine ■ CodePINK ■ Jewish Voice for Peace ■ National Students for Justice in Palestine ■ US Campaign for Palestinian Rights US Campaign for Palestinian Rights (USCPR) Executive Director Yousef Munayyer…
World Health Organization warns hospitals could be plunged into darkness by end of February without fresh funding to keep emergency generators running Babies born prematurely are crammed into an incubator at al-Shifa hospital in Gaza, where experts say ‘dangerous overcrowding’ has become commonplace. (Sarah Helm for the Observer) Rebecca Ratcliffe, The Guardian, 3 Jan 2018…
Ben Caspit, from his twitter feed Jonathan Ofir, Mondoweiss, December 26, 2017 Prominent Israeli journalist Ben Caspit caused international furor last week, when he wrote in his Maariv article that “in the case of the girls, we should exact a price at some other opportunity, in the dark, without witnesses and cameras”. Caspit has certainly…
Shared Injustice, Shared Struggle on International Day of Solidarity Claire Gilbert, Grassroots International, November 28, 2017 November 29th is the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian people. These days, the global Palestinian solidarity movement has deepened and grown with powerful expressions of joint struggle with other movements around the world. A few weeks ago…
Ali Sawafta, Reuters, January 1, 2018 OFER PRISON, West Bank (Reuters) – Israel indicted a 16-year-old Palestinian girl on Monday on charges including assault for punching an Israeli soldier in the face two weeks ago, an incident which made her into a hero for Palestinians and was seen as humiliating by right-wing Israelis. Israel has…
Niveen Abboushi, Facebook, December 22 Who am I? I am a Palestinian girl. Before I was born, the occupation took most of my village’s lands to build a new settlement called Halamish. Then they arrested my father. When my aunt went to visit him, one of the soldiers pushed her over the stairs of the…
No one should have to live under the rule of an occupying army. No one should have to pass through checkpoints on their way to school, watch their family members be shot, or have their homes invaded in the middle of the night. Two weeks ago, 16-year-old Palestinian girl, Ahed Tamimi, couldn’t take it anymore.…
The Middle East Children’s Alliance (MECA) “Many mothers told us the same story. Their children are so scared of the dark they won’t even get up at night to use the bathroom. One mother brings home rubbing alcohol from the clinic where she works to make a small fire so her children can have light…
On December 18, 2017, in the middle of the night the Israeli army burst into the Tamimi family home and arrested 16-year-old girl, Ahed Tamimi. They beat her father, mother, older and younger brothers and confiscated the families laptops, phones and cameras. Today, when Ahed’s mother, Nariman, went to inquire which detention center her daughter…
Abu Thurayyah was demonstrating against the US decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital when he was killed [Mohammed Salem/Reuters] AL JAZEERA NEWS, 16 Dec 2017 Two days before he was killed, Ibrahim Abu Thurayyah filmed a message to the Israeli army. “I am passing a message to the Zionist occupation army,” the 29-year-old double…
Israeli Forces Kill 4 Palestinians, including Lower-Limb Amputee, and Wound 252 Civilians, including Children, Journalists and Paramedics Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR), Gaza City, Ref: 90/2017, December 16, 2017 On Friday Afternoon, 15 December 2017,Israeli forces killed 3 Palestinian civilians; one of whom is a lower-limb amputee, and wounded 252 civilians, including 19 children,…
Playgrounds for Palestine – Madison July 9, 2016 Hi everyone, I went to Hebron yesterday and helped with the installation of the playground. They were supposed to continue today but working on Saturday is a bit risky because of the settlers. See attached some pics. 2 international volunteers were also helping us. Best, Samir •…
This is how Israel marked Human Rights Day. Please call the following (ask for the foreign policy aide) to intervene on behalf of Abdul Khalik Burnat with the U.S. State Department: Sen. Baldwin, Madison: 608-264-5338 Sen. Baldwin, DC: 202-224-5653 Rep. Pocan, Madison: 608-258-9800 Rep. Pocan, DC: 202-225-2906 (Pocan is a signer of HR 4391 on…
Creative Solutions to the Israel-Palestine Conflict Dr. Johan Galtung Professor and Founder of Transcend International Livestream from The Palestine Center Washington, DC 11:00 pm – 1:00 pm CST Nobel Peace Prize nominee, Dr. Johan Galtung will discuss alternatives to the one-state, two-state solutions for Israel-Palestine. A sociologist and mathematician by profession, Galtung is recognized as…
Sana Saeed, AJ+, June 11, 2017 Jerusalem is arguably the most contentious city in history. From the Crusades to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, a lot of civilizations and peoples have tried to claim the land. But the recent history of Jerusalem has made the city more than just contentious – it’s made it one of…
Position Paper: A Grant of Recognition from those who do not own to those who do not deserve The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR), December 7, 2017 Baflour Declaration Recurs In a dangerous precedent that violates the international law, on Wednesday, the US President, Donald Trump, declared that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel and…
As the UN’s day of solidarity with Palestinians nears, Gazans have restored a hesitant bustle Miriam Berger, The Guardian, Saturday 25 November 2017 Fishermen off the coast of Gaza City, which is home to a 5,000-year-old port. (David Levene, The Guardian) Today Medinat Ghazzah, or Gaza City, is running on empty – and yet still…
Anna Baltzer, US Campaign for Palestinian Rights, 29 Nov 2017 Have you ever heard anyone say that the issue of Palestine/Israel is “complicated?” We have, and now there is a video to debunk it. Today, on the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People and the 70th anniversary of the United Nation’s (UN) partition…
Monona Terrace Convention Center 1 John Nolen Drive, Madison 9 am to 4 pm Come do your holiday shopping with Madison-Rafah Sister City Project, Playgrounds for Palestine-Madison and 54 other vendors selling fair trade products from around the world! MRSCP and PfP will be selling Palestinian olive oil in several sizes, olive oil soap, zaatar,…
Business Insider/Julie Bort Josef Federman, Josh Lederman, Jamey Keaten, Business Insider, November 27, 2017 Israel and the Trump Administration are working “feverishly” to prevent a database of companies that operate in Israel’s West Bank settlements from being published. Dozens of major names are expected to appear on the list, including 100 local companies and 50…
PCHR’s Women Unit Starts 16 Days of Activism Campaign to End Violence Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR), November 26, 2017
Israel is so confident of its ability to expel Palestinian communities that it no longer even bothers to create the illusion of legal proceedings B’Tselem, November 22, 2017 Over the past month, the state has informed three Palestinian communities that it intends to expel them from their homes and land. The notification was made by…
Donna Smith, Progressive Democrats of America, Nov 22, 2017 Yemen Is Suffering. Please Help. While there is so much going on in this country and so much upheaval continues to swirl around our planet, many millions of Americans find themselves in a rush to get away from all things political long enough to find even…
The White House should intervene
“Palestine and the Restrictions on Academic Freedom” Listen live online here Tuesday, November 21 11:30 am – 1:00 pm CENTRAL TIME Dr. Rabab Abdulhadi The Palestine Center, Washington, DC The presentation will also be posted on line after the talk. Dr. Rabab Abdulhadi is Associate Professor of Ethnic Studies/Race and Resistance Studies & the Senior…
First Congregational United Church of Christ 1609 University Avenue, Madison 7:00 pm The local Bright Stars of Bethlehem chapter presents its fourth annual Advent Lessons and Carols service to support Dar al Kalima University College in Bethlehem. Musicians and readers from over a half-dozen local congregations will present beautiful music and you can join in…
First Unitarian Society Landmark Auditorium 900 University Bay Drive, Madison 7:00 pm Rabbi Arik Ascherman has dedicated his life to upholding the Jewish tradition of universal human rights, winning victories for Palestinians and unemployed Israelis alike, and sometimes placing himself in physical danger. After leading Rabbis For Human Rights for 21 years, Rabbi Ascherman recently…
[pdf-embedder url=”http://madisonrafah.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/United-Against-Hate-flyer-FINAL.pdf”] It’s been five years since the attack on the Sikh Temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, when the calm of a Sunday on August 5, 2012, was shattered by a White Supremacist Gunman killing six innocent people and wounded others. This gunman was a member of a hate group founded by Arno Michaelis.…
Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, November 14, 2017 Republican Gov. Scott Walker has prohibited the state from doing business with anyone who participates in a boycott against Israel, a move guaranteed to please a Las Vegas casino billionaire who has contributed more than $900,000 to Walker and the state GOP. On Oct. 27, Walker issue Executive Order…
Barbara Olson and Tsela Barr, Wisconsin State Journal, November 11, 2017 Barbara OlsonTsela Barr Gov. Scott Walker just issued an executive order prohibiting current or future state contracts with any “business entity” that engages in the constitutionally protected right to boycott Israel for its human rights violations. Republicans are pushing two similar bills in the…
Featuring beautiful and unusual holiday gifts and items from around the world. All proceeds go to the organizations and their artisans to help them become self-sustaining. MRSCP and Playgrounds for Palestine-Madison will be selling our Palestinian embroidery, ceramics, earrings, kuffiyehs, olive oil and olive oil soap. Free admission and parking. For more information on the…