The Madison-Rafah Sister City Project (MRSCP)
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May 15, 2025
❝Random Quotes❞
We cannot call ourselves Progressive and remain silent on Palestine. ― Jewish Voice for Peace
Ramzy Baroud, AntiWar.com, June 7, 2005 "Ramzy, I must admit it, it’s so hard being a Palestinian these days.” That’s how a friend of mine, a dedicated individual who is spending her days and years advocating justice for the Palestinian people, ended a distressing message to me a few months back. I recall her words…
Grainger Hall, University of Wisconsin 975 University Avenue Madison, WI 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM Dr. Norman Finkelstein, Professor of Political Theory at DePaul University and author of Image and Reality of the Israel-Palestine Conflict will present this keynote address at the U.S. Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation Upper Midwest Regional Organizing Conference. The…
First United Methodist Church Parlor 203 Wisconsin Ave, Madison Sunday mornings at 9:30 am This is a three-part discussion series on Palestine-Israel, and one on Iraq, sponsored by the First United Methodist Church. Participants include Jennifer Loewenstein, founding member of MRSCP, George Shalabi, and MRSCP Advisory Committee member Cecil Findley. A theme text is from…
Upper Midwest Regional Organizing Conference Madison, WI Join the U.S. Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation and the Madison-Rafah Sister City Project for a weekend conference to network, strategize, and build skills to end U.S. support for Israel’s military occupation. See the U.S. Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation for information on conferernce registration, agenda,…
Panel Discussion with Craig and Cindy Corrieand Khaled and Samah Nasrallah Saturday, June 25, 2005 7:30 PM – 9:00 PM The Crossing, 1127 University Ave., Madison, WI (corner of University and Charter) Cindy and Craig Corrie are the parents of U.S. peace activist Rachel Corrie, who was killed by the Israeli army in the Gaza…
Madison-Rafah Sister City Project, May 9, 2005 Madison — The Madison-Rafah Sister City Project (MRSCP) has enlisted the Mezan Center for Human Rights in Palestine as its key partner in maintaining peopleto-people relations with the citizens of Rafah in the Gaza Strip. The Mezan Center is a non-profit, non-partisan, transparent and accountable human rights organization…
Mohammed Omer, Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, May/June 2005 THEY BREATHE the same air, drink the same water, are covered by the same blue sky, yet the extremists among the Israeli settlers in occupied Palestine live in a different universe from that of their Palestinian neighbors. Ariel Sharon, who originally championed the settler movement…
How Madisonians helped create a respite from violence for Palestinian children Kathy Walsh, Isthmus, April 29, 2005 Children were everywhere. They were standing on rooftops, shooting marbles in the streets, playing “football” wherever there was bare ground, making their way to and from school. And always in the background there was machine-gun fire. This was…
Al-Awda, The Electronic Intifada, 27 April 2005 (Madison, WI- 04/27/05) – The Association of University of Wisconsin Professionals (TAUWP) has adopted a resolution that calls on the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents to divest from companies that provide the Israeli Army with weapons, equipment, and supporting systems. TAUWP is a statewide local of the…
St. Mark’s Lutheran Chapel 605 Spruce St., Madison 7:00 PM This season of Passover is observed with the Seder ceremony, which celebrates the liberation of the Jewish people from slavery. This year we will have the opportunity to participate in a Seder celebration that is open to people of all beliefs and supports two excellent…
On Tuesday, April 12, 2005 the Teaching Assistants Association (TAA) of UW-Madison debated a resolution calling on the UW to divest from companies doing business with the Israeli military. Discussion of this issue had been tabled at the March general meeting when members voted to hold an additional information session on the divestment issue (held…
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Shamai Leibowitz, The Electronic Intifada, 24 March 2005 The assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri has led to an explosion of “people power” in the streets of Beirut, in which hundreds of thousands of Lebanese citizens have called for an end to Syria’s occupation of their land. These calls have been celebrated and…
On his first visit to the Gaza Strip, Daniel Day-Lewis meets the Palestinian families living in the heart of the danger zone — and the psychologists who are counselling them Authors in the Frontline: Daniel Day-Lewis The Sunday Times Magazine, March 20, 2005 Mossa’ab, the interpreter, leads the way, carrying a white Médecins Sans Frontiéres…
The pilgrimage to Jerusalem of so many European leaders shows that they are not deterred by the criticism of Israel – they are taking part in a media event that can only be interpreted as support for Israel, as it is today. Amira Hass, Haaretz, Mar 16, 2005 The crowd of world leaders visiting the…
Ruth Conniff, The Progressive, March 7, 2005 On Saturday I sat with other members of the conservative synagogue in Madison, Wisconsin, listening to Yonatan Shapira, a pilot in the Israeli Air Force since 1991 before he was dismissed after refusing to serve in the Occupied Territories. It was a controversial event. Shapira calls the bombing…
A Partners for Peace presentation Sunday, April 10, 2005 — 4 pm Memorial United Church of Christ 5705 West Lacy Rd. Fitchburg Monday, April 11, 2005 — 7 pm First Unitarian Society Meeting House 900 University Bay Dr. Madison Sponsored by the Madison-Rafah Sister City Project (MRSCP) , The Peace and Justice Committee of the…
FAYYAD SBAIHAT, Badger Herald, Mar 3, 2005 The University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents has adopted a series of guidelines to regulate the $330 million UW trust fund. The trust and investment policies are meant to prevent the university’s money from being invested in companies whose business is deemed unethical or immoral. These policies…
Madison, Wis — A silent auction of donated art work benefiting Augusta Victoria Hospital in Palestine will be on display March 6-20, 2005. The show opens Sunday, March 6, 2005 at St. Stephen’s Lutheran Church, Monona in Koinonia Place, with a reception from 6 to 8 p.m. Initial viewing and bidding will take place at…
JOSH MOSKOWITZ, Badger Herald, Feb 24, 2005 In just a few short weeks, the political climate in Israel has drastically changed. One needs to look no further for proof than by scrutinizing the actions of Ariel Sharon, the Israeli prime minister, and Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president. Sharon recently released 500 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli…
March 4, 6:00 PM, Congregation Shaarei Shamayim, Prairie Unitarian Universalist Society building, 2010 Whenona Drive, Madison. Potluck followed by a discussion with Shapira. Daycare will be available. March 5, 9:00 AM, Beth Israel Center, 1406 Mound Street, Madison. Shapira will speak during services and stay for discussion after the Kiddush. March 5, 5:00 PM –…
Gwen Evans, UW News, February 8, 2005 For filmmaker Saul Landau, who has interviewed the likes of Fidel Castro and Zapatista leaders in Chiapas, Mexico, the recent popularity of political documentaries must give him cheer. With more than 40 films to his credit, he has been putting a focus on human rights and social and…
Barrymore Theatre 2090 Atwood Avenue Madison 5:00-9:30 pm Celebrating Solidarity from Latin America to the Middle East An Evening of Solidarity Films and Food– Featuring Saul and Greg Landau, Special Guest renowned cinematographer Haskell Wexler, and Evening DJ by rapper “The Iron Sheik”. Part of the sixth annual Cinefest. This event is a benefit for…
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U.S. Media & the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Anderson Auditorium, Predolin Hall Edgewood College, Madison 7:00 – 9:30 pm Peace, Propaganda and the Promised Land This pivotal video exposes how the foreign policy interests of American political elites–working in combination with Israeli public relations strategies–exercise a powerful influence over news reporting about the Middle East conflict. Combining…
Some may wield an old financial tool – divestment – to register concern about peace prospects Jane Lampman, The Christian Science Monitor, DECEMBER 6, 2004 A vote by the Presbyterian Church (USA) to use economic sanctions against certain companies doing business with Israel – namely those that profit from the occupation of the West Bank…
B.J. Paschal, Fort Wayne News-Sentinel, December 1, 2004 DOES AN AMERICAN religious denomination such as the Presbyterian Church have the right to divest an $8 billion portfolio from Israel? Apparently not, according to the U.S. News & World Report, headed by Editor-in-Chief Mortimer B. Zuckerman and other pro-Israel embedded “journalists” such as John Leo. How…
First Unitarian Church University Bay Drive 7:00 pm We will be hosting a program with two of the five high school “refuseniks” from Israel, Noam Bahat and Shimri Zameret, recently released from prison.
UW-Madison Humanities, Rm 3650 7:00 pm The Fourth World War will have its Madison premiere hosted by producers/directors Rick Rowley and Jacqueline Soohen. MRSCP is one of the co-sponsors of this showing. Shot on the front lines of struggles spanning five continents, The Fourth World War is the untold story of people who resist being…
PERSONAL VIEWS British Medical Journal, October 16, 2004 Does the death of an Arab weigh the same as that of a US or Israeli citizen? The Israeli army, with utter impunity, has killed more unarmed Palestinian civilians since September 2000 than the number of people who died on September 11, 2001. In conducting 238 extrajudicial…
Israeli troops who killed a Palestinian schoolgirl in the Gaza Strip have come under investigation for riddling her with bullets Al Jazeera, 11 Oct 2004 Rights groups say the Israeli army uses excessive force Iman al-Hams, 13, was shot 20 times on 5 October as she walked past an Israeli military outpost on the way…
If the donor states now finance the upgrading of Palestinian roads, they will be providing the Palestinians with temporary relief. But they will be direct accessories in consolidating a uniquely Israeli regime of separation and apartheid. Amira Hass, Haaretz, Sep 08, 2004 It’s only logical and self-evident that the road from Bir Zeit to Attara,…
9/8/2004 Dear Jennifer, I hope you are fine. I was reading the news on haaretz daily today when I encountered the following text: ‘The army’s presence around the southern town of Khan Yunis, however, is part of a routine operation to search for wanted men and weapons. Militants use tunnels running underneath the nearby border…
BRINGING THE OCCUPATION OF IRAQ AND PALESTINE TO MADISON On September 20th and 24th, the Madison Area Peace Coalition and Madison-Rafah Sister City Project host the Wheels of Justice Tour. Rolling into town in a full-size, brightly decorated school bus, the tour brings eyewitness accounts from Iraq and Palestine to challenge and educate Americans about…
8/19/2004 Here’s a message from a friend in Gaza. It talks about life in Rafah, Gaza City, working at the NGO Al Mezan. A true terrorist Palestinian with no other concerns than the destruction of Israel. — Jennifer Loewenstein Dear J, It was great talking to you yesterday. When I told you I was tired,…
ICB sculpture The Segregation Wall, 09-Nov-03 Memorial United Church of Christ 5705 W. Lacy Rd Fitchburg 7:00 pm Rev. Dr. Mitri Raheb, Pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bethlehem, will be speaking on the work of the International Center of Bethlehem. The ICB promotes the building of a civil society in Palestine by…
Andrea Becker, 04 July 2004 Relatively easy somehow: went through Israeli security ‘lite’: no body massages, or bag checks, and treated my security interrogator to a discussion of Jabotinsky, prompting ‘why are you interested in this stuff anyway? Well, whatever. Have a nice day.’ Early morning arrival at Qalandia checkpoint, north of Jerusalem. Rose and…
A leading UN official has warned US manufacturer Caterpillar that it may be complicit in human rights violations in the West Bank and Gaza Thousands of Palestinians have had homes and livelihoods demolished. BBC News, 15 June, 2004 The company supplies armoured bulldozers to the Israeli army that are used to demolish Palestinian homes. Human…
11 June 2004 Friends, I have just returned from a trip to Lebanon and Syria leading a group of 18 people to meet with the Palestinian Refugees in both countries. In Lebanon, they live worse than ever. No wild animal would live under such conditions. In the thirty five years that I have been visiting…
6/6/2004 Friends, Last week probably set a record for demonstrations in Israel against the occupation — a result not only of the 37th “anniversary” of the occupation, which we mark in June, but also of the ongoing violence in Gaza: Some 30-40 more Rafah homes were destroyed this week, while many Palestinians were arrested…
The Crossing 1127 University Avenue (University and Charter) 7:00 pm The Mosaic Communities group is presenting two speakers, one Jewish and one Palestinian, and both members of the Israeli Committee Against Home Demolitions. Mosaic builds integrated (Arab-Jewish) housing in Israel. Yasser Akawi, Board member, and Fred Schlomka, Executive Director, will present an update on the…
Paris, 22 May 2004 We, European citizens from ten European countries gathered in Paris for a meeting of the organisation European Jews for a Just Peace, condemn in the strongest possible terms the Israeli governmentís policies in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, and especially in Rafah. Many of its actions amount to war crimes under the…
Mazin Qumsiyeh, 5/9/2004 Here is something to inspire you. Read this. It will help you believe your efforts are all worth it. — Jennifer Loewenstein The UN General Assembly passed a resolution (again overwhelming support) to affirm that the occupied Palestinian territories, including East Jerusalem, remain subject to the 4th Geneva Convention (Israel as the…
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Please check out this site for the latest news on Rafah: www.palestinemonitor.org The Madison chapter of Al-Awda (Palestine Right to Return Coaliton) is hosting a silent march on Tuesday, May 25th, beginning at 7pm in rememberance of the recent atrocities in Rafah. We will meet at Library Mall and parade up state street to the…
May 20, 2004 Attached is the Rafah Update Volume 5. The situation is worsenning so fast in Rafah. IOF invaded new areas in the southeast of the town — Tel Al Sultan is in the west of Rafah — and there are many devastating anecdotes. The humanitarian situation in Tel Al Sultan, however, is so…
Amira Hass, Haaretz, 5/20/04 RAFAH — Suddenly there was a shout from outside: “Leave everything. The Jews have fired missiles at the demonstration. Lots of casualties. Send ambulances.” The man shouting ran into the small hut in the hospital’s yard from where the ambulance drivers leave. It was around two in the afternoon. A…
May 18, 2004 Friends, We need your help. There is an emergency situation right now in the Gaza Strip and the town of Rafah, in particular, with scenes that bring to mind Israel’s invasion of Jenin and Nablus in the spring of 2002. So far today, 18 Palestinians were killed, but the action continues. Last…
18 May 2004 Dear Madam/Sir, I write to you today with the high hopes that your consistent support to the Palestinian People and commitment to the peace process as the only way out of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict would translate into immediate and decisive actions to alleviate the suffering of the devastated Rafah families. As you…
Julie McCarthy, NPR, May 16, 2004 Israelis gather for a peace march to urge a pullout from the Gaza Strip. The demonstration follows a week of violence during which more than a dozen Israeli soldiers and 30 Palestinians were killed. NPR’s Julie McCarthy reports.