|
Portland,
Ore.,
May
23,
2008.
Americans
United
for
Palestinian
Human
Rights
(AUPHR)
has
taken
out
a
full
page
ad
on
page
A-8
of
The
Oregonian
today
to
commemorate
the
ethnic
cleansing
of
Palestinians
from
their
homeland
that
began
in
1947-1948
with
the
founding
of
the
state
of
Israel
60
years
ago.
The
ad
will
also
publicize
a
May
31,
2008
program
of
events
that
will
take
place
at
Portland
State
University's
Hoffman
Hall,
1833
SW
11th
Avenue,
between
1
and
5pm
aimed
at
raising
awareness
about
the
Palestinian
expulsion
and
dispossession.
The
program
includes
an
opening
ceremony
with
Native
American
sovereignty
drumming
in
solidarity
with
the
Palestinian
People,
two
documentary
films
on
the
Palestinian
refugee
crisis,
and
a
lecture
by
Dr.
George
Bisharat,
UC
San
Francisco
Hastings
College
of
Law
Professor
entitled,
"Ending
the
Palestinian
Nakba".
The
full
page
ad
shows
an
image
of a
Palestinian
woman
refugee
carrying
a
pail
of
water
through
a
muddy
refugee
camp
against
a
backdrop
of
an
endless
sea
of
tents.
The
photo
was
taken
by
the
United
Nations
Relief
and
Works
Agency
for
Palestinian
Refugees
after
1948.
The
ad
was
created
by
Ildy
Toth
of
Portland,
Oregon,
recent
winner
of
an
international
poster
competition
on
the
Palestinian
dispossession
that
is
currently
being
displayed
in
Manhattan
subway
terminals.
Dr.
Bisharat
has
been
an
outspoken
critic
of
Israel
and
has
compared
the
goals
of
Zionism,
the
ideological
framework
for
the
creation
of
the
Jewish
state,
to
those
of
Hamas,
the
Islamic
movement
in
Palestine.
"Where
Hamas
seeks
an
Islamic
state,
Zionism
seeks
a
Jewish
state.
Each
promotes
a
vision
that
privileges
one
group
over
another.
Both
impulses
are
illegitimate,"
says
Bisharat.
"There
is
no
room
in
the
21st
century
for
ethno-religious
exclusionism
as
espoused
by
Hamas
or
Israel."
About
Americans
United
for
Palestinian
Human
Rights:
AUPHR
is a
Portland-based
grassroots
organization
that
advocates
for
a US
foreign
policy
that
promotes
adherence
to
and
compliance
with
international
human
rights
norms
by
all
countries
including
Israel.
The
event
is
co-sponsored
by
Friends
of
Sabeel
North
America,
a
Christian
organization
that
works
in
solidarity
with
Palestinian
Christian
communities
living
in
historic
Palestine,
the
National
Lawyers
Guild
of
Portland,
and
the
Muslim
Student
Association
at
Portland
State
University.
------------------------------------------------
for
more
information,
contact:
Peter
Miller
&
Zaha
Hassan,
AUPHR
Phone:
+1-503-358-7475
Email:
info@auphr.org |
