PGHIMC - Pittsburgh Independent Media Center

WOMEN UNDER OCCUPATION: FROM PALESTINE TO IRAQ
by JONAS Monday, Feb. 16, 2004 at 2:03 PM
goOPTICS@yahoo.com

Women Under Occupation: From Iraq to Palestine Feb 23, 2004 at 7pm University of Pittsburgh- Cathedral of Learning Room 3240 With the March 20th convergence approaching, check out this very informative connection of these dual Occupations

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Women Under Occupation: From Palestine To Iraq

A Report By Kate Raphael

(Sponsored by the Pittsburgh Palestine Solidarity Committee, OPTICS (Organizing Pittsburgh to Increase Community Solidarity), The Middle East Peace Forum, The Thomas Merton Center, ISO (International Socialist Organization), Dennis Brutus, WILPF (Women's International League for Peace and Freedom)


Friday, February 23, 7 p.m.
UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH
CATHEDRAL OF LEARNING ROOM 3240

Bay Area activist Kate Raphael will speak on February 23 about her work in Palestine, and the recent women's delegation to Iraq. As a member of the International Women's Peace Service (IWPS) Kate spent six months supporting Palestinian resistance to the Israeli occupation and the construction of the apartheid wall. She also created the "Neighbor to Neighbor (Mikarov)" project, that brough Israelis into Palestinian villages to document the effects of the occupation with a commitment to educate their own communities.

While she was videotaping Israeli soldiers attacking a non-violent demonstration against the wall in Budrus, Kate was arrested and ordered deported. She was held in prison for 8 days,and upon release was required to leave the country within a week. She went to Jordan, and joined a women's delegation that spent 7 days in Iraq, investigating the effects of the U.S. occupation on women and children.

On February 23, Kate will talk about her work, and about the effects of occupation on the peoples in the region, with a particular focus on Palestinian and Iraqi women. Kate is a Jewish lesbian, and is a member of several Bay Area groups, including Queers Undermining Israeli Terrorism (QUIT!), San Francisco Women in Black, LAGAI -- Queer Insurrection and Direct Action to Stop the War.

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International Women's Peace Service Palestine is an international team of 16 women
based in Hares, a village in the Salfit Governorate of Palestine's West Bank, which
began for three continuous years from August 2002. IWPS documents human rights abuses,
works with the media, and non-violently intervenes in abuses. IWPS supports and participates in
non-violent civil resistance to oppose human rights abuses and the confiscation
and destruction of land and property of Palestinian civilians. This includes helping
remove roadblocks, accompanying Palestinians whilst they farm, and blocking destruction of trees and homes. IWPS supports Palestinian and Israeli peace movements in their civil resistance to end the illegal military Occupation. For more information, see http://www.womenspeacepalestine.org.

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Dont forget that the Palestine Solidarity Committee is going to have a huge presence in the MArch 20 convergence in Pittsburgh against war and occupation. Attend this teach-in to find out more about how you can help

www.geocities.com/goOPTICS/OPTICS

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