Mideast Just Peace

<>GRAND RAPIDS MINISTER TO SPEAK ABOUT BETHLEHEM MISSION
Building Goodwill and Playgrounds for Palestinian Children
Nathan Dannison, a graduate student at Chicago  Theological Seminary and
director of Outreach Ministries at Park Church in Grand Rapids, will be in Traverse City  on Saturday, March 29, 2008 and Sunday, March 30, 2008 to talk about his upcoming trip to Palestine to learn Arabic, follow in the footsteps of Jesus, and finance and build a playground for Palestinian children in Bethlehem. The playground is a project of the Philadelphia-based Playgrounds for Palestine (www.playgroundsforpalestine.org), whose mission is to give Palestinian children bright, safe, developmentally appropriate places to play. The group describes its work as “an affirmation of their right to childhood and a minimal recognition of their humanity… an act of Love.”

Dannison’s presentations are sponsored by the local peace group MidEast:
JustPeace which was founded in Traverse City in 2002 to bring more
attention to the efforts to end the Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands. Attendees will be asked to help with donations toward the Bethlehem
playground. Dannison will speak three times over the weekend.

• Saturday, March 29th at the Grace Episcopal Church Hall, 341 Washington St. at 6:00 PM beginning with a potluck Attendees
  are asked to bring a dish to share and their own plates and utensils.
  Presentation at 7:00 PM.
  
• Sunday, March 30th at the Traverse Area District Library at 2:00 PM.
• Sunday, March 30th at the Potter’s House Church, UCC at 5:00 PM. The Potter’s House Church, UCC meets at Grace Episcopal Church, 341 Washington St. The Potter’s House is co-sponsoring his presentation at their church.

<>“Ever since I became “politically aware” in high school the Israeli / Palestinian conflagration has deeply troubled me. In my adult
life have had an opportunity to spend my graduate career studying and             following Jesus of Nazareth, a man from Palestine, who was a healer and proclaimed the justice tradition of the prophet Isaiah and
the Tanakh,” said Dannison. “[Reports state that] only 2.5% of children living in the occupied territories are free from symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, and one survey found that 83% of local children had witnessed shootings. This, coupled with the fact that Palestinian children are regularly killed by military actions carried out near their homes, is why I feel very strongly about what Playgrounds for Palestine is doing for the people who live in this impoverished region.” For more information please call Marian Kromkowski at 231.271.5600 or
Gina Aranki at 231.620.6515.

War with No End
MidEast:JustPeace joins the US Campaign Against the Israeli Occupation Book Club Selection for February:
The MidEast:JustPeace 2008 Book Club begins on Tuesday February 12, 2008 at 7:00 PM at Horizon Bookstore in Traverse City.   

The inaugural book for our 2008 series is “War with No End” an important new anthology of essays published by Verso Books in conjunction with United for Peace and Justice and the Stop the War Coalition (UK). Phyllis Bennis, John Berger, Naomi Klein, Arundhati Roy, Joe Sacco and others examine the consequences of the “War on Terror.”

On October 7th 2001, US-led forces invaded Afghanistan, marking the start of George Bush and Tony Blair’s “War on Terror.” Six years on, where have the policies of Bush and Blair left us? Bringing together some of the finest contemporary writers, this wide-ranging anthology, from reportage and “faction” to fiction, explores the impact of this “long war” throughout the world, from Palestine to Iraq, Abu Ghraib, the curtailment of civil liberties and manipulation of public opinion. The February selection provides an urgent, necessary reflection on the causes and consequences of the ideological War on Terror.
Copies of the book are available at Horizon Book Store in Traverse City. There is a 10% discount as part of the MidEast:JustPeace Book Club.  Selections include:
* “Come September,” by Arundhati Roy
* “Human Shield,” by John Berger
* “Songs of Resistance,” by Haifa Zangana
* “Weddings and Beheadings,” by Hanif Kureishi
* “Down! Up!,” by Joe Sacco
* “Mezzaterra,” by Ahdaf Soueif
* “Homeland Wars,” by Tram Nguyen
* “Not in Our Names,” by Sept. 11 Families for Peaceful Tomorrows
* “Building a Booming Economy Based on War with No End: The Lessons of Israel,” by Naomi Klein 

The Campaign Against Torture, a subcommittee of Traverse for Peace and Justice and in conjunction with the American Friends Service Committee, will host a two-hour workshop on our understanding of the practice of torture by the U.S. government on Saturday, January 26, 2008 at 10:30 AM at the Traverse Area District Library.

This fast-paced workshop will touch upon difficult questions for Americans: Are we by our by association and acquiescence a nation of torturers?  Are we willing to accept that a “war against terror” justifies just about any act imaginable?  What are the laws governing torture?  What is its history?  What should and can we do to confront the use of torture?  Join us to discuss these questions.
Public Invited/No Charge.
More information call: Terri DeFillipo 231-228-6030

<>Fourth Annual MidEast:JustParty

Give Peace a Dance

 Monday December 3, 2007 

6:00 PM to 8:30 PM

Traverse Area District Library

New to this Year’s Event are Middle Eastern Dance Lessons! Join the Fun!
Other Attractions include Middle Eastern food, sweets, coffee and mint tea, a bazaar featuring Palestinian embroidery and Olive Oil,  music and more.   Suggested Donation $5
“That’s What It’s All About”

Build Bridges Not Bombs!
Peace Gathering Labor Day at Mackinac Bridge

Northern Michigan peace proponents will again make their voices heard at the annual Mackinac Labor Day Bridge Walk.

Northern Michigan People for Peace, Mideast:JustPeace and Straits Area Concerned Citizens for Peace & Justice are urging peace advocates throughout the state to join them at the bridge this Labor Day in calling for the immediate withdrawal of all U.S. troops from Iraq and the impeachment of President Bush and Vice President Cheney.

Peace advocates, dressed in black, will stand at the south end of the bridge

8 a.m.–Noon, Monday, Sept. 3.

Last year 200 of us marched across the bridge wearing black shirts calling on the Governor to “Bring the Guard Home!”  Many bridge walkers encouraged us, including the Governor, but this illegal and immoral war rages on, so we’ll continue to speak out until our troops are brought home. Thousands of American soldiers, including 141 from Michigan, and hundreds of thousands of Iraqis, have been killed. It’s way past time to stop this madness.

Join Us at the Mackinac Bridge!
Bring the Troops Home Now!
Impeach Bush! Impeach Cheney!

Please dress in black and bring a sign or banner

For more information, contact:

Stephen Brede, Northern Michigan People for Peace,
231.348.5499, greatlakescanoe@sbcglobal.net

Ellis Boal, Northern Michigan People for Peace
231.547.2626, EllisBoal@voyager.net

Marian Kromkowski, Mideast:JustPeace
231.271.5600, mkrom@centurytel.net

Karen Martin, Straits Area Concerned Citizens for Peace & Justice
877.828.6871, plantmam@racc2000.com

Read and Relate to Realities of the Middle East

Reading gives us a unique window on the world. With this in mind and time for summer reading ahead, MidEast: JustPeace announces a series of discussions using books on Middle East topics. We begin with Jimmy Carter’s best-selling book Palestine Peace or Apartheid on September 10. . This book presents historical and political background on countries of the area, along with the former president’s analysis of the ongoing struggle between Palestine and Israel. Written in a factual but popular style, Carter also puts forth his ideas for resolution of the struggle.

The October 1 selection, Men in the Sun—a novel by acclaimed Palestinian author Ghassan Kanafani—explores the meaning of home through the experiences of three men of different generations. The third selection, for November 5, a first-person account called Sharon and My Mother-in-Law, is a witty but prescient book by a young wife and mother. In diary form, Suad Amiry, an architect and writer, tells us about day-to-day life in the Occupied Territories.

All books are available at Horizon Books at a 10% discount; if you are also a member of Horizon’s own book-buying club, you will 2 discount. Books are also available second-hand at reasonable prices online through Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

Discussions will all be held at 7 p.m. on September 10, October 1 and November 5. Location to be announced soon. Coffee will be available. For information call 231-228-7115 or 231-271-5600.

Details on the three books:

September 10, 7 p.m.:
Palestine Peace or Apartheid by Jimmy Carter.
October 1, 7 p.m.
Men in the Sun by Ghassan Kanafani.
November 5, 7 p.m.:
Sharon and My Mother-in-Law: Ramallah Diaries by Suad Amiry. London: Granta Books, 2005, 194 pages.

The MidEast:JustPeace Steering Committe has been busy helping organize the anti-war actions here in Traverse City. With the week of March 14-17 events behind us and the war and occupation still in front of us, the MEJP Steering Committee will be meeting this weekend to discuss and plan future events. Stay tuned………….