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Ihr Aktivismus am 1. Mai [02.05.2012]

In seiner aktuellen Email gibt der palästinensische Bürgerrechtler Mazin Qumsiyeh, Professor an der Bethlehem und der Bir Zeit Universität, einen Überblick, was Sie tun können, um den Besatzern Sand in das Getriebe zu steuern.

May Day and actions

Tuesday 1 May 2012 is celebrated as May Day or Workers Day around the world. On this date we all recall the struggle of workers against the greed of corporations. It is this greed by the elites that also led to wars, colonialism, occupation, and repression in indigenous communities from Vietnam to Iraq to Palestine to Columbia. Around the world, the billionaires get richer while the poor people get poorer. The Palestinian holocaust like the previous holocausts of Blacks (tens of millions killed in the slave trade), native Americans (perhaps as many as 100 million), Jews, Gypsies, Armenians, and others. These actions benefitted the rich who got richer.

The history of collaboration of Zionists with the Nazi regime is now well established as is the fact that Zionism was simply the other side of the coin of racism. More than half of the world billionaires are Zionists who are shameless in their support of the apartheid state of Israel in its attempted genocide of the Palestinians. 530 Towns and villages were depopulated thanks to numerous massacres committed against the native Palestinians in the past 64 years. 7 million Palestinians are refugees or displaced people. Thousands languish as political prisoners in Israeli jails. Those political prisoners are now engaged in a hunger strike and have called for making 1 May 2012 a day of strikes and actions to highlight the Palestinian struggle. Whether the thousands of Palestinians in the small prisons or the millions of us languishing in large prisons like Gaza or Bethlehem, we say it is time for all of us to stand together.

Doing action in the direction for peace and justice is liberating to everyone.
Consider suing Israel for genocide

Action 1: Sign the The Peoples Charter to Create a Nonviolent World':
Please sign this The People's Charter to Create a Nonviolent World .
Europe’s airlines enforce Israeli travel ban on activists hoping to repair Palestinian schools
Israel (the supposed democracy) prevents its own citizens from simply holding signs with the names of the ethnically cleansed Palestinian villages on the so called "Independence day" of apartheid Israel:
Police besieging event commemorating the Nakba, Tel Aviv, Israel, 25.04.2012 (Video)

Action 2: Call Airlines to stop being sub-contractors to Israeli occupation
Action: Call Airlines to stop being sub-contractors to Fascist Israel

Action 3: Jewish voice for peace asking you to sign in support of 60 minutes for doing a story on Palestinian Christians that actually asked us Christians to speak! I signed: Thank you 60 Minutes
See also Palestinian Christians Respond to Israeli Ambassador Michael Oren and Israel’s not-so-stellar record on treatment of Christians.

I wrote this letter to the NY Times public editor (Ombudsperson), Art Brisbane, public@nytimes.com, (212)556-7652 and as a letter to the editor letters@nytimes.com. Please consider doing the same.

To the editor (for publication)

*Why does the New York Times allow itself to be a vehicle for distributing lies and hatred? The "public service" message from Mr. Horowitz published in the NY Times is precisely that. It claims that those who called for boycotts, divestment, and sanctions against South Africa under apartheid and now call for similar nonviolent tactics against Israeli apartheid are "anti-Semites" and worse even as promoters of genocide!***

*This is utter lies and defamation of decent people who act on their conscience to try to influence the Israeli government and elites in the same manner we succeeded in influencing the apartheid system of South Africa. I do know that such shrill attacks will not deter those who act on their conscience. More and more Israelis and Internationals are finally saying enough is enough of these tactics of intimidation and McCarthyism. [Below is one such voice from an Israeli Dorothy Naor which I urge you to solicit from her as an op-ed piece].

*We, Palestinian Christians have also issued a call for BDS in the spirit of truth (kairospalestine.ps). Humanity will not be silenced by the tactics of those who support racism and apartheid.

Mazin Qumsiyeh, PhD
A Bedouin in Cyberspace, a villager at home
Professor, Bethlehem and Birzeit Universities
Chairman of the Board, Palestinian Center for Rapprochement Between People,

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