Crisis In Gaza

The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) joins our voice with those who say that violence and killing must end. But calling for an end to current violence is not enough. Peace is more than the absence of outright war—it requires the presence of justice, of equality, of recognizing our common humanity. We must work to end the coercive and corrosive control of Palestinians by Israel, and to transform the systems that are perpetuating injustice and death.

Since mid-June, when three Israeli youth were kidnapped and Israel launched a campaign of collective punishment in the occupied Palestinian territory, Israel has carried out bombing attacks against Gaza, while Palestinian factions fired periodic rockets into Israel. On July 18, Israel launched a ground invasion in the Gaza strip. Over 680 Palestinians and 35 Israelis have been killed.

As the situation in Gaza unfolds, we will bring you AFSC's latest statements, resources, and stories from the people affected by the conflict, and ways that you can take action.

Read More, Take action.

Gaza Under Siege

For thousands of years, Gaza has been an important seaport and trade community, exporting agricultural produce to other areas of historic Palestine and serving as a way station for traders traveling along the Egypt-Syria trade route. Located in the southwest most corner of historic Palestine, Gaza is home to a wealth of natural resources including fertile agricultural land, rich fishing grounds, and large offshore natural gas reserves. Gaza also has beautiful beaches, a rich history, and a moderate climate, all of which make it a potentially attractive tourist destination. Add to this a highly educated and youthful population (60 percent under the age of 18, and over 40 percent age 14 or younger), and you might expect  that Gaza’s development prospects were positive. 

Unfortunately this is not the case. Gaza’s wealth is largely unreachable as a direct result of Israel’s occupation and blockade. Most agricultural land is located in places declared closed military areas (“no go” zones) or has been destroyed during military attacks. Access to traditional fishing grounds is restricted by the Israeli navy. Development of the natural gas reserves is forbidden by the Israeli government. All of this while the movement of people into and out of Gaza is severely restricted and both the import of goods and the export of products from Gaza is strictly limited. Military attacks over the last 13 years have also resulted in the near complete destruction of Gaza’s business and manufacturing base. As a result, the unemployment rate among Gaza’s 1.7 million residents is over 35 percent  and poverty rates are even higher. More than 80 percent of the population is now dependent on international assistance for survival. Yet the people of Gaza have not lost hope, continuing to dream about and work for a better future.

This paper provides additional information about Gaza and the impact of Israeli policies on the people living there...Read more

March Against Israeli Brutality

Today around 100 Atlantans gathered at Troy Davis Park (Woodruff Park) and marched to the CNN Center to protest the recent revenge killings of Palestinians by Israeli citizens and the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF). These killings can be seen in the wider context of the ongoing brutality of Israel’s military occupation, which has left six Palestinian children and twenty six Palestinian adults dead in 2014 alone.

Now Israel and Israeli citizens are charging all Palestinians, void of evidence, of killing three Israeli teenagers. This purported crime against Israel has been used to justify dropping bombs on the Palestinian population that is living in open air prisons.  While Israeli citizens have autonomy to travel openly, Palestinians are subjected to apartheid occupation and have very little freedom of movement for things such as, travel or work. Sadly, we continue to see Israel using collective punishment against an entire population for crimes which have not yet been fully understood.

How is the conflict across the globe connected to Georgians? Georgia tax dollars, to the tune of 10million per day, are used to fund mothers dying of bombshells and children being beaten, abducted, and shot by IDF soldiers. It is the responsibility of every American not only to care about where their taxes are going, but to be morally indignant at such crimes against humanity. Some of the F16’s the Israeli military uses are made in Marietta, just outside Atlanta

Today’s march was organized by The Movement to End IsraeliApartheid-Georgia is an Atlanta-based group dedicated to the global campaign of Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) of Israel until it abides by international law and human rights and supported by a number of groups including American Friends Service Committee.

Hundreds Marched Against the Siege of Gaza

Today , November 24th hundreds of people gathered at Woodruff Park and marched to the CNN Center in protest of the ongoing Israeli attacks on Gaza. Movement to End Israeli Apartheid-Georgia (MEIA-G) has called on people of conscience to gather to demand that the US government end all military, financial and political support to Israel until it ends the occupation of Palestine and dismantles its apartheid system.

The 1.7 million people in Gaza are living in an open-air prison, denied many of their most basic rights, including the right to adequate food and clean water, housing, and sanitation, by Israel, a military superpower, enforcing a blockade that the U.N. has deemed to be illegal.

In this most recent assault on the besieged Gaza Strip, Israel has launched over 1600 air strikes killing at least 162 Palestinians. The threat of continued air assaults and ground invasion still remain after Israel killed another Palestinian just hours after an agreed ceasefire.

"Israel's most recent act attacks are a strong reminder that we must engage in and intensify broad-based boycotts, divestment initiatives, and sanction campaigns to expose and sever United States' ties to Israel until it recognizes Palestinians' inalienable right to self-determination," said Aysha Abdullatif.

The global tide of public opinion has turned against the Israeli government as a result of their brutal 2009 bombardment of Gaza, their attack on the international freedom flotillas, and the human rights violation resulting from the siege of Gaza. The tide has yet to reach the United States. The United States continues to give 10 million dollars a day in military aid to the Israeli government, and many of the F16's that drop bombs on Gaza are made in the metro area Lockheed Martin.

It is safe to say that the Israeli governments human rights violations and war crimes are made possibly by our own government. Without our military support Israel might be forced to negotiated a real peace.  

Movement to End Israeli Apartheid-Georgia (MEIA-G) is an Atlanta-based group dedicated to the global campaign of Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) of Israel until it abides by international law and human rights. MEIA-G mobilized thousands in January 2009 in the streets of Atlanta to protest Israel's massacre against the Palestinians in Gaza.

American Friends Service Committee played an important role in developing the MEIA-G network, and we're excited to work with MEIA-G moving forward.

Voices From Gaza

We are collecting stories from Palestinians whose lives are affected by the current conflict. We will continue to add more voices as our staff and partners in the region are able to collect and share more.

Learn more about AFSC's response to the crisis in Gaza.

November 21, 2012

Amal Sabawi

AFSC staff member, Gaza: “Every night is a nightmare. The deaths of very little children, just months old - just a few years old, are especially shocking. These are miserable times. I try to keep in touch with all the staff each day. Last night there was an airstrike against the neighborhood where my colleague Ibrahim lives. They were evacuated by the Red Cross in the middle of the night. I am worried about Rana with her four small children. Why should children pay such a heavy price?

When war is imposed upon us we have to continue, we have to stand regardless of what is happening around us. We have to tell the truth and be brave. I find it hard to talk, to express my feelings, this is not a time for crying, I know I must find my voice.”

Rana Joda

AFSC staff member, Gaza: “My children have become experts in distinguishing the sounds of the explosions whether the sound emanates from an F16, a rocket, or a missile. Abdullah - my 2-year-old - who still cannot talk properly automatically steers himself to the safe area in our house when he hears an explosion. It is so sad to see this behavior among my four children instead of being surrounded with their happy sounds. I am hopeful for a cease-fire, this shimmer of hope helps me move on another day”.

Mos’ab Abu Dagga

AFSC staff member, 31 years old, Gaza: “It was a tough night, in the wake of a potential ceasefire agreement, with intensive shelling. I have high morale given that I have had similar experiences here upon my return from the Emirates in 1995. My wife though received a special kind of welcome upon her arrival to the Strip for our wedding ten days ago. She has lived abroad all her life and is finding it difficult, but with God’s will we will make it. God will help us through!”.

November 20, 2012

Samar al-Za’aneen

Former Palestinian Youth Program Coach, 19 years old, Gaza:  “I am still alive!, that was my answer to my 22-yeard old brother’s frantic knock on the bathroom door, just after a missile struck nearby, while I was taking a shower. We had to seek refuge at my grandfather’s. Our house, which sits in front of our large vineyard, was in the line of fire. Three missiles struck the vineyard, and we had to flee. Everybody is in danger, and I can no longer understand what is happening. I am the youngest in the household, my mother who is a psycho-social worker, tries to boost my morale, but I have already lost a brother in the past, and now everything seems so trivial to me.  I no longer care about the house, or the oranges, or the vegetables, I just want to be safe with my other brother, mother and father and live in peace”.

Islam Madhoun

AFSC staff member, 27 years old, Gaza: “My eleven-month baby sprints and shivers every time he hears an explosion. My wife tries to put some cotton in his ears to minimize the impact of the sound, but he finds this uncomfortable. I stocked my house with baby supplies as soon as I heard about the Jafari attack on Wednesday, but the question is how long will this last? We are in a state of eternal waiting. We sit all together in one room in the middle of the house to protect ourselves in case of a missile, God forbid. We have no shelters, no bunkers and no safe protected area. It takes Israelis 90 seconds to seek shelter and takes us long hours to dig out the corpses from the rubble. This time there is no distinction between civilians and combatants, we are all targeted… there is no distinction”.

Ibrahem Shatali

AFSC staff member, 32 years old, Gaza: “My father sought refuge in Gaza after being forced to leave Majdal in 1948.  He was only 12 years old when he accompanied his parents to what was thought to be a safer place. Today, we have to go to a funeral at my cousins’ who lost his twins and other members of his family. It is very sad. I live in my family’s home together with my five brothers, their wives, and offspring. You are talking about moving a human mass of 30 children towards the stairway every time an explosion is heard in the vicinity. The Islamic National Bank, targeted this morning is 500 meters away from our home, and 150 meters from the AFSC office. Every day the series of explosions begins at 6:00 pm and escalates until 6:00 am at which time we try to steal some hours of sleep. No one is exempt from this terrifying experience”.

Gaza Solidarity in the Streets of ATL

Today about 150 Atlantans crowded outside the Israeli consulate on spring street to call for an end to the assault and ongoing siege on Gaza.

Though an overwhelming amount of media air time has been devoted to the plight of Israeli's living in fear of a Palestinian attack, there are some realities on the ground that are just not being reported in the US mainstream media.

It must first be articulated that Gaza is by far the world largest open air prison. Gaza has been under siege for years, denied most of their basic human needs by a military superpower that has openly restricted food from men, women, and children.

There have been over 130 Gaza fatalities and 5 Israeli deaths. All of these are tragedies  It's also a tragedy that by listening to US mainstream media one would believe that Israeli live are for more important then Palestinians.

It has been said that there can be no objectivity in the context of clear oppression. It is difficult to take anyone seriously that truly takes in all the facts on the ground in Israel and Palestine and believes the PR coming out of Israel right now, it is a nation that has truly lost credibility. We are grateful to know so many amazing Israeli's here in Atlanta that stand against the actions of Israel, in fact many of those folks joined us in the streets today.

It really must be noted that every bomb being dropped on Gaza is sponsored by the US in more ways then one. The F16's that drop many of those bombs are made in Marietta, and subsidized with US tax dollars. The United States gives about 10 million dollars a day to Israel in military aid. The US also blocks UN resolutions aimed at confronting Israel for what the rest of the world sees as aggressive human rights violations and war crimes towards Palestinians. There was a time in this country when the US government claimed that all native American's were savage sub humans, and they posed a threat to our survival. History of course remembers us as the genocidal savages.

American Friends Service Committee is honored to support the Movement to End Israeli Apartheid action this Saturday. We hope you will join us in building a world that lifts everyone up to the same level, regardless of whether their parents are Israeli or Palestinian

AFSC Calls for an Immediate End to the Ongoing Israeli Military Attack on Gaza

The attack, code named “Pillar of Defense”, began 14 November with the assassination of Hamas’ Gaza Military Commander Ahmed Jabari and coordinated attacks on 20 alleged Hamas targets throughout Gaza.  These attacks have been followed by the continued shelling and bombardment of Gaza from the air, land, and sea.  Gaza is home to 1.6 million Palestinians of whom fifty per cent are children under the age of 18.

There have already been over ten Palestinians killed, including young children, as a result of the attack.  As violence usually leads to violence, Palestinians have retaliated resulting in Israeli deaths and injuries. The number of dead and injured on both sides will continue to rise as the violence continues.

It is likely that a great deal of attention will be paid to the question of who started the latest escalation. This attention will be misplaced: the roots of the current conflict are to be found in Israel’s ongoing occupation of the Gaza strip, its failure to recognize the results of the 2006 Palestinian elections, and the continued Gaza blockade. 

In both the short and long term, military escalation and violence will do nothing to make either Palestinian or Israeli civilians safer.  Rather, they will likely increase suffering by civilians on both sides of the conflict.  There are striking similarities between the current situation and the events that immediately preceded Israel’s “Operation Cast Lead” which began in December 2008 and during which over 1,400 Palestinians, including over 300 children, were killed.  The world cannot sit by and allow a similar tragedy to occur. 

The US government and the international community must immediately pressure Israel to completely end its assault on Gaza.  The US government has a particular responsibility to ensure that the nearly $4 billion it provides to Israel annually in military assistance is not misused and it therefore must do more than simply “monitor the situation”.

Pressure to end the immediate violence should be complimented by a diplomatic offensive that targets both Israel and all Palestinian factions and that has as its goal ending the occupation and realizing a just peace.  The only way to truly end the violence of the conflict is to end the occupation, respect international law, and ensure equal rights for all. 

Palestinian UN Bid: US Should Press for Peace, Not Punishment

Joint Statement of the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC), the Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL), and the Quaker United Nations Office in New York (QUNO)

We are gravely concerned that the response of the Obama administration and Congress to the Palestinian quest for statehood recognition at the United Nations will further fuel violent conflict in the Middle East. Rather than punish Palestinians for pursuing an international forum for addressing their right to self-determination, the United States should welcome this non-violent approach and use its diplomatic influence and resources to leverage the political opening toward securing a comprehensive and lasting resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The Obama administration’s plan to veto Palestine’s anticipated U.N. membership application regrettably signals the continuation of U.S. policy that obstructs Palestinian self-determination and undermines prospects for Israeli-Palestinian peace. Many members of Congress are proposing the elimination of development and humanitarian assistance for Palestinians and the withholding of all funding to U.N. programs that recognize any upgrade to the status of the Palestinian mission. Threats to unjustly punish Palestinians and possibly even the entire U.N. system in response to decisions by U.N member states on Palestine will only undermine security for Israelis and Palestinians and amplify the voices of extremists on all sides of the conflict.

Palestinians’ Turn to the U.N. Reflects Failure of U.S.-led Negotiations

As a matter of international law and practice, the Palestinians, like any other aspiring peoples seeking statehood recognition, have the right to present their case to the international community. The legitimacy of this effort was referenced a year ago by President Obama himself when he stated forthrightly before the U.N. General Assembly the goal of securing “an agreement that can lead to a new member of the United Nations, an independent, sovereign state of Palestine living in peace with Israel”.

Unfortunately, the U.S.-brokered process for resolving the conflict has failed to reach this goal, and in fact, led to further deterioration of the conflict over the past year. Negotiations collapsed only a month after President Obama’s speech at the U.N., and Israeli settlement expansion has continued at an alarming rate, claiming de facto territory that under international law and longstanding U.S. policy should belong to a future Palestinian state. With negotiations stalled and settlements expanding, the Palestinian leadership has chosen to take its case for statehood to
the United Nations.

Nonviolence Should Be Welcomed, Not Punished

Millions of peoples across the Middle East and North Africa are employing nonviolent means to bring about widespread, far-reaching reforms in support of more transparent, democratic selfgovernance. Nonviolent approaches to Palestinian self-determination at the U.N. and in both the
Palestinian territories and Israel should similarly be encouraged.

In this context, we urge the U.S. to use its voice and vote at the U.N. to welcome the Palestinian initiative for its nonviolent approach to self-determination and conflict resolution.

While Palestinian civil society leaders and the Palestinian Authority have committed to a path of nonviolence in September, the specter of violence in the aftermath of decisions at the U.N. looms large. We are opposed to the use of violence by all parties, and are deeply troubled by reports that the Israeli military has permitted the use of violence to confront unarmed, Palestinian demonstrators at protests expected to coincide with U.N. deliberations on Palestine.

Next Steps for the U.S.: Seize Opportunity to Take Bold Steps for Peace

The Obama administration and Congress should craft any U.S. policy response in ways which uphold the U.S. commitments to international law, self-determination, and the continued search for justice and security for both Israelis and Palestinians.

Recommendations for the Obama administration:

• Use U.S. voice and vote at the U.N. to welcome the use of nonviolent approaches rooted in international law to resolve conflict. A lone U.S. veto in the Security Council would be a sharp rebuke to Palestinian nonviolence and would undermine the rising forces of democracy and nonviolence throughout the Middle East.
• Call on all parties to exercise maximum restraint in the aftermath of the deliberations at the U.N. on Palestine.
• Invest in high-level diplomatic energy to press for comprehensive negotiations in good faith between Israel and a unified Palestinian government, encouraging rather than impeding Palestinian reconciliation efforts.

Recommendations for Congress:

• Reject H.R. 2829, The United Nations Transparency, Accountability, and Reform Act of 2011 introduced by Representative Ros-Lehtinen, which unjustly punishes not only Palestinians, but the entire U.N. system and all those around the world who benefit from its life-saving programs.
• Reject cuts to U.S. development and humanitarian aid for Palestinians, which would only increase the potential for further violence in the region.

Toward a Just and Lasting Peace

We urge the Obama administration and Congress to avoid retaliatory measures against the Palestinians that would increase political despondency at this critical juncture, and instead demonstrate U.S. leadership to press for a comprehensive negotiated settlement that offers a path toward lasting peace and security for all.

The Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) has worked for more than a century to promote a just and lasting peace in the Middle East. FCNL and AFSC are national Quaker organizations that are committed to pressing the United States to play a more constructive role in resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. QUNO represents the global community of Quakers at the United Nations in New York. Our work is rooted in historic Quaker testimonies on peace and equality and longstanding Quaker witness in the region.

Nakba Day In Atlanta

Nakba Day is an annual day of commemoration for the Palestinian People of the displacement that accompanied the creation of Israel in 1948.

During the 1948 war an estimated 700,000 Palestinian's were expelled or fled their land and hundreds of Palestinian villages were depopulated and destroyed.

The overwhelming majority of Palestinian refugees, both those outside the 1949 armistice lines at the war's conclusion and those internally displaced, were barred by the newly declared state of Israel from returning to their homes or reclaiming their property. They number several million people today, divided between Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip, with another at least quarter of million internally displaced Palestinians in Israel. It should be noted that descendants of refugees live all over the world, with Atlanta being no exception.

The Loss of Palestine and the dispossession and dispersal of the Palestinian people is known to them as al-Nakba, meaning "the catastrophe," or "the disaster." The Nakba day is one recognized globally, marked by commemorations and resistance actions.

Locally the Movement to End Israeli Apartheid Georgia(MEIAG) held it's third annual Nakba commemoration at Piedmont park. It was a day not only set aside to share stories of family history, but also a day to build community and to enjoy each others company. This years event was by far the largest to date. Over the past year MEIAG has been working with Palestinian refugees in Clarkston , work that AFSC strongly supports whenever we can. Several families fromt the refugee community came out to the park to share their stories, meet new friends, share delicious food, and play games in the park.

Today we hold up Palestinian communities all over the world as we hope for peace and work for justice in the region. To learn more about AFSC's operation's in Palestine Click HERE.


Photo Credit: Ghazal Ahmadi


Tim Franzen
American Friends Service Committee

Building ESL Infrastructure In Clarkston

Today members of the Movement to End Israeli Apartheid Georgia (MEIAG) and Project Hope Atlanta met in Clarkston to take a tour of the space where ESL classes will be taught starting next Tuesday. The ESL classes will be a free service that caters to Palestinian, Iraqi, and other refugee women who live in the area.

The classes represent the first collaboration between both groups. MEIAG has been exploring ways to engage with the Palestinian refugee community for the last year, organizing outings, rides to doctors appointments, and more.

It's exciting to see Project Hope and MEIAG coming together to bring ESL classes right to the doorsteps of refugee women that may not have had access otherwise. It's also impressive that MEIAG's analysis leads the group not only to act for global change by working to end the Apartheid practices of Israel, but to address the local consequences of Aparthied as well.

Kelli's Childcare Collective has agreed to facilitate free childcare in an effort to make classes accessable to mothers in the community.

AFSC Atlanta is exciting to play a supportive role in this exciting new project, and we hope you are too!

You Can Help!

1. We need more volunteer ESL teachers
2. we could really use some help with childcare on Tuesdays from 2-4
3. Donate to cover travel expenses for volunteers

Please contact me if you're able to help at tfranzen@afsc.org


Tim Franzen
American Friends Service Committee

Take A Bite Out Of Apartheid With One Call/Email!!!

WHAT IS GILEE?

The Georgia International Law Enforcement Exchange (GILEE) is a program coordinated by Dr. Robert Friedmann and the GSU Criminal Justice Department. The purpose of the program is to facilitate training exchanges between Georgia police departments and others around the world. While the GILEE program has relationships with several international police agencies,their relationship with the Israeli police is the most intimate and most troubling. Police (as well as other public employees) from across Georgia have attended over a dozen
delegations to Israel in recent yeas to learn
“counter-terrorism” techniques. Likewise,
Israeli police have traveled to Georgia under
the auspices of GILEE to learn drug law
enforcement techniques.

Why should You be concerned?

Israel’s so-called “counter terrorism”
techniques are in reality the protection
and support of an apartheid state. For over
sixty years, Palestinians have lived under a
regime of racial segregation and oppression.
In Palestine-Israel, Palestinians live under:


1. Systemic expropriation of land and property
through laws and unstated practices

2. 5 million Palestinians (not including millions of exiles) can only live in a very small percentage of the land in Palestine-Israel

3. Creation of Bantustans, or Palestineonly ghettos in which Palestinians are deprived of basic survival necessities including food and clean water

4. Creation of Jewish-only areas and roads, which serve to restrict the movement of Palestinians

5. Systematic murders, collective state terror, and mass imprisonment

6. Destruction of Palestinian’s economic means of survival and social infrastructure

7. The ongoing commitment of the Israeli government to continue with racial segregation and ethnic cleansing.

Israeli police are essential
to the carrying out of these
racist and inhumane practices. Their vision
of “counter-terrorism” is a one of torture,
arbitrary arrest and detention, extra judicial
killings, discriminatory profiling of Arabs,
and a military court system that falls short
of international standards for fair trail,
among countless others. The very policemen
conducting these practices in Israel are
teaching them to Georgia police officers so
they can carry them out on Georgia soil.
Georgia International Law Enforcement
Exchange not only supports violations of
human rights against Palestinians, but also
gestures to the goal of implementing them
here in Georgia toward populations already
targeted by discriminatory police practices.
We need not forget that the Atlanta
Police Department has a long and troubling
history of violating citizen’s rights, racial
profiling, and similar though not identical
cases of extra-judicial murder and physical
abuse, with Kathryn Johnston, Tremaine
Miller and Pierre George only a few of the
victims in recent years.*


You Can Help Shut Down GILEE And Take A Bite Out Of Apartheid Right Now!!
We are calling on all of our friends from around the country to take five minutes to do this today, and then tell friends of conscious to do the same!! Let our collective voices amplify into an unstoppable force!

The Movement to End Israeli Apartheid and the Progressive Student Alliance demand that GSU President Becker shut down the Georgia International Law Enforcement Exchange. We ask that you join this critical national effort to put pressure on President Becker to SHUT GILEE DOWN.

***On Tuesday, October 19th from 9 am to 5 pm please call 404-413-1300, email mbecker@gsu.edu and fax 404-413-1301 with the following message***

"My name is _________ and I am calling from _________. Dr. Becker, I strongly urge you to shut down Georgia International Law Enforcement Exchange. With GSU’s growing international reputation, the university cannot afford to be associated with Israel, a country that consistently violates international law. One such example is the May 2010 killing of nine unarmed civilians in international waters carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza. I urge you to move toward Shutting GILEE Down and to meet with your students and concerned community members to discuss this matter. Thank you."

AFSC Atlanta is proud to support this effort, we thank you in advance for your willingness to take the time to make the call, to witness for peace, to work against inequities, and build a more just world.

For More Information about the Movement to End Israeli Apartheid's(MEIAG) GILEE campaign visit:
www.meiag.org


*Taken From MEIAG's, "What You Need To Know About Georgia State Universities Involvement With Human Rights Abuses" pamphlet.


*********************************UPDATE******************************************
At 5:11pm today(10/19) Dr. Becker's office confirmed that he will be meeting with students to discuss concerns about GSU's connections to human rights abuses through GILEE! This is a major victory! Thanks to all who added their voice to the choir by calling/faxing/emailing Dr. Becker's office today. This is your victory!!

DAM Show Rocks Atlanta!!

AFSC Atlanta had the opportunity to work with the Movement to End Israeli Apartheid Georgia(MEIAG) in their effort to organize the Atlanta concert for the DAM 2010 Spring tour. For those the don't know DAM is the first hip hop crew to come out of Palestine and their the subject of the award winning and wildly entertaining documentary, "SlingsShot Hip Hop."

It took us over six months to get DAM booked for the show. We did have DAM booked tentatively last November but the US denied their visas and we had to do the show without them. There was fear up to the last few weeks that the same thing could happen again.

We knew that show was going to be big when the facebook event grew from 350 invites to 5000 in a matter of days. MEIAG folks also plastered Atlanta with beautiful concert posters, made radio PSA's, and booked to popular Atlanta hip hop acts( Contraverse and Weapons of Audio) to promote the show.

The show was booked at the Drunken Unicorn, a venue known for it's great sound system and kinetic crowds. Any anxiety about a light turnout totally evaporated when the doors opened at 9pm to a rather long line of folks anxious to get in. The venue reached max capacity within 45 minutes!!

After members of MEIAG welcomed the crowd Weapons of Audio launched into an energetic set that infused electronic funk and hip hop. Contraverse also wowed the crowd with their sharp beats, tight rhymes, and smooth flow. It's safe to say that the crowd was thoroughly warmed up for the eagerly awaited headlining act, DAM.

I've been a hip hop fan for years. I grew up on Def Jam artist of the 80's. The first album I every bought was Run DMC's "Raising Hell". I must say the DAM is an unusual occurrence in a live hip hop experience. They definitely bring an energy that could match any hip hop act touring today, they have a lot of charisma live( you really can never tell by watching a groups videos), their beats force your hands in the air, their lyrical message holds depth and meaning with out coming off preachy or compromising the shear entertainment of the show. DAM's performance was one of the stronger hip hop shows I've seen in years. The crowd might have torn the walls down had DAM not played an encore. After DAM leaving the stage there was literally a layer of moisture on the ceiling dripping down, no joke.

Folks stuck around after the show to network, meet the bands, pick up MEIAG literature and sign up on MEIAG's email list. The show was a great opportunity for MEIAG to get face to face with folks in the community that normally would not come out to panels, research meetings, or demonstrations. It gave us a chance to talk about an Atlanta based Boycott, Divest, Sanctions campaign designed to cut cultural and financial ties with Israel, and engage new partners in the community. The night was a huge success for MEIAG and AFSC was excited to have a part in it.

Links:
Movement to End Isaeli Aparthied-
www.meiag.org

DAM-
http://www.myspace.com/damrap

Contraverse-
http://www.myspace.com/thecontraverse

Weapons of Audio-
http://weaponsofaudio.com/?p=2044

Slingshot Hip Hop-
http://www.slingshothiphop.com/

Tim Franzen
American Friends Service Committee