palestinians conference in a couple weeks

who’s going? hollerrr!!!! i need somewhere to stay.

the deadline for early registration has been extended until friday…..

Join the

National Popular Conference for Palestinians in the U.S.

Reclaiming our Voice, Asserting our Narrative

August 8-10, 2008 in Chicago

www.palestineconference.org

Who?

Any and all Palestinians in the U.S. - No political or organizational affiliation is required or promoted; Palestinians of all ages and backgrounds are welcome!

What?

The first all-inclusive National Conference of Palestinians in the U.S. It includes speakers from around the world, dozens of workshops from hip-hop to community organizing, town-hall discussions, and cultural events from dabka to painting. Come embrace our heritage! We are not terrorists. We deserve our voice and our rights!

Why?

To preserve and nurture our ancient culture, empower and unify our community, and coordinate activist efforts across the country. Come meet new people. Come learn about our shared history. Come feel the spirit and the magic of soaring wing-to-wing with fellow Palestinians!

When?

Friday, August 8^th at 7:00 PM –

Sunday, August 10^th at 3:00 PM

Where?

The Wyndham O’Hare Hotel

6810 Mannheim Rd.

Rosemont, IL 60018

Register Now!

Register online at www.palestineconferce.org, or call the Palestine Office at (313) 945-9660. Time is running out, so act quickly!

Whole Families Welcome, with low registration fees for children, babysitting all day, and workshops specifically for kids.

Discounted Registration for Students

Transportation Coordination underway from Detroit and Ann Arbor – please call (313) 945 9660 and check megabus.com.

More Information – see below, and visit www.palestineconferece.org, or call 1-888-48 NAKBA

Total cost breakdown 1 Student 1 Adult 2 Adults 1 Child

Registration (incl. 5 meals) 60 120 200 30

Hotel (4 to a room, 2 nights) 50 50 50 50

Transportation (round trip Megabus) 60 60 120 60

Total estimated cost 170 230 370 140

If you are excited and really want to come but are still having financial difficulty, please call the Palestine Office in Dearborn at (313) 945-9660. We may be able to help a limited number of people with the cost, and can put together groups to share rooms.

CONFERENCE PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS

Continuous Exhibits

Quilt display and making: a room dedicated to the display of quilts made by Palestinians made in the U.S. Materials made available so that participants can make their own patches to constitute a new quilt!

Oral History narration & recording: a room dedicated to screening oral histories of Palestinians. Another station will be available where new oral histories are recorded by conference participants.

Snapshots of our community power!: a photo exhibit displaying achievements of our community on behalf of Palestinian human rights from around the country.

Speakers

Archbishop Dr. Theodosius Atallah Hanna (via satellite)

Ambassador Dr. Clovis Maksoud

Ra’ad Salah (via satellite)

Poet Tamim Barghouti

Dr. Mustafa Barghouti

Dr. Rabab Abdel Hadi

Ms. Rafeef Ziadah

Plenary and Popular Assembly

Plenary I: Undermining the Right of Return, Targeting Palestinian Refugees: The Case of Palestinian American Political Prisoners. What can the Palestinian Arab community in the US do to support prisoners and their families, and to overcome fear-induced paralysis? Featuring the family of Dr. Sami Al-Arian, members of the LA 8, and friends and families of Mr. Muhammad Salah and Dr. Abdelhaleem Ashqar

Plenary II: Placing the Right of Return at the forefront of Palestinian, Arab, Muslim and solidarity agendas in the U.S.; Intensifying US-based Efforts and Coordination towards Realizing the Refugees’ Return: Featuring Congressional, Refugee-support, Legal, Grassroots, and Academic angles.

What comes after the conference? Popular Assembly: The Future of the Palestinian National Body, and the role of Palestinian Refugees and Exiles in the US in the Struggle for Self-Determination and Return.

Cultural Events

Banquet with Dabkeh, Poetry Reading, Hip Hop by Palestinian American youth, and Children’s Performances.

Art Exhibit and Auction by Ibrahim Shalaby

Workshops

Presented in three sessions Saturday, listed here with preliminary titles.

1.        Break the Siege on Gaza,  Discussion on situation in Gaza with a live video feed from boat attempting to break the siege, Dr. Mazin Qumsiyeh 

2.        Palestinian Citizens of Israel, Discussion on the exclusion of Palestinian citizens from the discussion of the Palestinian Diaspora, Bashir Idillbi 

3.        Handala and Naji Al-Ali, Khaled Meshal 

4.        Evaluating the State of Palestinian Activism: Past, Present, Future, Palestinian American Congress-Connecticut & Lama Nasser 

5.        Nakba and Building Support for Palestinian Refugees, Dr. Jamil Fayez and Reem Alnuweiri on behalf of Takaful 

6.        Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions, and Mainstream Churches in the U.S, Grace Said & Phillip Farah 

7.        General Union of Palestinian Students/Palestinia n Youth Network, Organizing Palestinian students across university campuses, Loubna Qatami 

8.        Engaging our elected officials, the Presidential Campaign 2008 and Beyond, Reema Dodin, Congressional Staffer on the Senate and Maher Bitar, American Association for Palestinian Equal Rights   

9.        Self-Organizing and Community Politics: Evaluating what divides us and moving forward in unison, Layla Kristy Feghali and Gihad Ali 

10.     The Gift of the Arabic Language, Hala Tibi 

11.     Dabkeh 101: How to Dance, Rasmiya Masoud 

12.     Hip Hop and Spoken Word: Using art to spread our message, William Youmans aka Iron Sheik, Nizar Wattad aka Ragtop, Tarik Kazaleh aka Excentrik, and Remi Kanazi 

13.     Tatreez & Zajal: Preserving our Cultural Heritage, [hands on workshop!], Nehad Khader 

14.     Meet the Fimmakers and learn how to make your own, Jackie Salloum, Nasri Zacharie, and Bassam Haddad 

15.     Building campaigns to support Palestinian activists and academics, Dr. Hatem Bazian 

16.     Media 101: Breaking into the mainstream, Lubna Takruri 

Children’s Workshops

17.     Live feed with Children in Balata Refugee Camp 

18.     Arab-Black-Native American relations 

19.     Mapping out Palestine, Interactive game to develop skills on speaking about our struggle

Solidarity Workshop

20.     How to be in solidarity with the Palestinian movement for self-determination responsibly? 

Arabic-Speaking Workshop

21.     Evaluating our efforts and finding new ways of collaboration to move forward 

REGISTERING FOR THE CONFERENCE

www.palestineconference.org - $120 adults ($200 for two); $60 students; $30 children under 12

Registration fees include 5 meals - Friday Dinner, Saturday Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner and Sunday Brunch.

Registration fees do not include hotel stay. You can call the hotel directly at (847)-297-1234 to reserve your room(s). Don’t forget to mention USPCN to get the special rate of $89 a night, plus tax. Make your hotel reservations early since the rate will expire.

Register early to take advantage of the early registration discount; fees will increase.

Help subsidize a student’s registration - $60; keep student registration discounted.

Contact conference@palestineconference.org or (88 48 NAKBA with any questions about registration or

Palestine Office at Palestine1948@sbcglobal.net or 313-610-6242

phyrecracker:

Born and raised in the diaspora often means that you mediate the world through two languages that are in some way foreign to you. In this context nothing is real. Or, by contrast, everything is real. Our experience in this linguistic purgatory challenges the existence of constancy and objective meaning.

So as diaspora kids we are inherently threatening. We are too fluid. We transcend borders. We never asked permission. We appreciate the luxury of the so-called “first world” because part of us resides in our homeland with the people, with the sadness, with the knowledge of people who died before their time. Our bodies are in some small part composed of all of this. Our appreciation of our world, especially when manifest as a fierce love of justice, is subversive with the latent potential for revolution.

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yesterday, at the request of an elderly lady in the neighborhood we’re in, myself and a bunch of detroit high school students filled in a pothole in an alley with buckets and buckets full of weeds we had pulled out of the playground. an elderly lady in the neighborhood we’re working in asked us to do this. it was SO satisfying to fill in a pothole for once instead of just complaining about them or smashing into them all the time.

All I think about is writing, all the things I want to say. I am obsessed but get so paralyzed when I start stretching my fingertips towards the keyboard. The backlight on the laptop keyboard flickers between on and off, unsure like me.

all power to you. you will definitely touch that ground. and not as a visitor intimidated by paramilitary customs officials who reject your presence, but as a child of the land who will be welcomed to it with open arms. time is on your side, be patient. great things are coming.

i wish i had about 80 copies of no snow here #11 right now! all these fierce media making women of color and i have no zines!!!!

[video: sinead o'conner, this is a rebel song]

how come you never say you’re sorry?

mizna: seeking graphic designer

via mizna:

Mizna is seeking a Graphic Design Artist to produce the program and poster for our Film Festival to be held in October 2008. Must be able to produce high quality illustrations and print layout. Should be able to work independently but meet the deadlines that are in place by Mizna staff. Knowledge of Arab American culture and/or Arabic language preferred.

Please e-mail resume to mizna@mizna.org and please make sure to put GRAPHIC DESIGN ARTIST in the subject heading.

or send resume to:
Mizna
2205 California St. NE #105
Minneapolis, MN 55418

Mizna is a forum for Arab American art. Visit our website at http://www.mizna.org

detroit palestinian town hall meeting

via palestine office:

Calling all Palestinians who care!

Palestinian Town Hall Meeting

Friday June 27, 2008 @ 7:00PM

Featuring

live video recorded poetry by Tamim Barghouti who is “Pushing Mahmoud Darwish’s Palestinian poetry to higher orbit” and discussion to

Build for an all-inclusive US Palestinian Popular Conference

August 8-10, 2008 in Chicago

Guest Speakers Muhammad Oweis & ‘Amer Othman

members of the National Coordinating Committee of US Palestinian Conference Network (USPCN) will lead the conversation. Please join:

Friday June 27, 2008 at 7:00PM

ACCESS Office

6451 Schaefer

(Betw. Ford Rd. and Warren Ave)

Dearborn, Michigan 48126

________________________________

Held Under the theme: “Reclaiming our voice…Asserting our narrative.”

The Chicago August Conference highlights include:

●Dr. Azmi Bishara ●Archbishop Atallah Hanna

●Abdul El-Bari Atwan ●Dr. Rabab Abdelhadi

●Dr. Tamim Barghouti (Poet and Political Scientist)

Dabkeh & zajal lessons, oral history recording

Quilt-making and art exhibit by Dr. Ibrahim Shalaby

Conference is held August 8-10, 2008 at the Wyndham O’Hare, 6810 N. Manheim Rd,

Rosemont, IL 60018

Register early for discount

: www.palestineconference.org ● 1-888-nakba