Grand Rapids activists make demands of the Catholic Bishop regarding the current genocidal campaign by Israel against the Palestinians
Last night, 15 activists showed up outside of the residence of the Catholic Bishop to make demands that the church leader publicly speak out against what the International Court of Justice (ICJ) has called a genocidal campaign by Israel against the Palestinian people.
Organized by the Comrades Collective, people held signs and chanted out the building on Sheldon SE, which houses the office of the Catholic Bishop and his residence. The Comrades Collective sent out a Media Release, which read:
“The protest is to demand that Bishop David J. Walkowiak make a public statement calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and to demand that the US government end all US Military Aid to Israel.
Bishop David J. Walkowiak is the moral leader of one of the most influential spiritual traditions in West Michigan, thus it is his duty to condemn the current genocidal campaign by Israel against the Palestinians living in Gaza. The International Criminal Court has even called what Israel is doing to the Palestinians as genocidal.
Bishop David J. Walkowiak has spoken out against other political matters, based on his previous statements, which people can view at this link.
To date, there have been more than 25,000 Palestinians killed by the Israel military campaign in Gaza, with the majority of those civilians being women and children. In addition, the Palestinians living in Gaza are facing massive food shortages, along with limited access to water. Lastly, most of the hospitals and other health care facilities in Gaza have been destroyed from the Israeli military assault.
It is imperative that Bishop David J. Walkowiak condemn such actions. In the words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., “A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death.” In this instance, it applies both to the Israeli and the United States governments.”
The Comrades Collective also sent Bishop Walkowiak a letter last night stating:
“We are members of a Grand Rapids based social justice group known as the Comrades Collective.
Since early October, we have been participating in numerous non-violent actions throughout the Greater Grand Rapids area, calling for the immediate ceasefire in Gaza and for Israel to stop their brutal assault on Palestinians.
As you probably know the most recent estimates are that over 25,000 Palestinians have been killed during the first 100 days of the Israeli assault on Palestinians, with the majority of those killed being civilians, with roughly 10,000 of them being children.
We are aware of the fact that you have taken a public stance and issue statement on issues that are very political. We are asking you to take a stand now on behalf of the Palestinians.
We are demanding that you issue a public statement calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and to demand that the US government end all US Military Aid to Israel. US Military Aid to Israel is currently $3.8 billion annually.
Bishop David J. Walkowiak, as the moral leader of one of the most influential spiritual traditions in West Michigan, it is your duty to condemn the current genocidal campaign by Israel against the Palestinians living in Gaza. The International Criminal Court has even called what Israel is doing to the Palestinians, as genocidal.
It is imperative that you condemn such actions, to add your name to the growing list of leaders calling for an immediate ceasefire, especially since you can influence so many people who are part of the Catholic faith. In the words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., “A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death.” In this instance, it applies both to the Israeli and the United States governments.
We look forward to your response and your commitment to peace and justice. If you would be interested in meeting with some of us to have a conversation, we would welcome that.”
If the Bishop’s office responds, we will provide an update. In the meantime, it is important to ask the question, “How can a religious leader remain silent on one of the most important human rights issues of our day?”
Housing Next has been appointed the spokesperson on the GR Housing crisis, but they only provide false solutions
Within the past month, the local news media has anointed the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce-created group, Housing Next, as the “official” spokesperson on the current housing crisis in Grand Rapids.
For example, check out these stories from WOODTV8 from January 12 and January 19th. In these stories the channel 8 reporter talks to Housing Next staff, some developers, people with the Grand Rapids Planning Commission and a few housing non-profits. These groups identify the current housing shortage and even issues around affordability, but the solutions they offer are reformist at best and ultimately false solutions.
The “solution” to the current housing crisis, according to Housing Next, involves local government, developers and non-profits. The fact of the matter is, Housing Next offers no real solution to the housing crisis, only the same old model, the market. This is not a solution or maybe more aptly named a false solution. This is because under a market system, housing is nothing more than a commodity that can be bought and solid to make profits. For the Chamber and those sectors of society who believe in the market, housing is not a fundamental human right. Housing within a market economy, particularly home ownership, is for those who can afford it, which leaves out millions of people in the US alone.
If you want to understand who is really behind the Housing Next effort, along with the ideological framework they operate under, just look at the list of “community partners” in the graphic above.
Last week, Housing Next sent out an Email encouraging people to attend the Grand Rapids planning commission meeting, in order to adopt some new zoning recommendations. All of these recommendations were reformist and none of them would address the structural issues that are central to the current housing crisis.
In addition, the so-called community partners that Housing Next was inviting to pressure the GR Planning Commission on these false housing solutions consisted on landlords and Property Management Companies, along with people like Greg McNeilly. McNeilly is the CEO & President of the Windquest Group, which is part of Dick and Betsy DeVos’ empire. In his letter to the Grand Rapids Planning Commission, McNeilly used trending terms like “upzoning” to try to influence the planning commissioners.
Not surprising, the Grand Rapids Planning Commission adopted the recommendations from Housing Next, which will eventually have to be approved by the Grand Rapids City Commission.
These false solutions are similar to what Michigan Governor Whitmer announced recently. The statewide coalition known as The Rent is Too Damn High, responded to Whitmer’s housing proposal by stating:
Here’s the truth: Behind the headlines, the Governor’s housing plan is mostly more of the same. It relies on huge giveaways to corporate landlords to build more housing. Landlords are sitting at the table to make these policies; organized renters are not. A small increase in affordable housing is a step to relieve the pain for some, but the rent is going to stay too damn high until we change the power relations at the heart of our housing system. That’s why we’re organizing to build power and demanding the solutions that renters deserve.
This is exactly what the Grand Rapids Area Tenant Union believes. In fact, the local tenant union believes that it is impossible to address the current housing crisis unless two things are done. First, housing must be taken out of the market and be made a right, where massive amounts of public money can be used to construct Social Housing. Second, until there is greater economic justice, there will always be a housing crisis. According to the most recent data from the Low Incoming Housing Coalition, for people living in the Grand Rapids/Wyoming area, they need to earn $25.50 an hour to afford the average cost of rent in this market. People need to make a living wage, otherwise there will continue to be a large class of people who will continue to not be able to afford rent or the option to purchase a home.
Lastly, as a counter to the false solution narrative of groups like Housing Next, the Grand Rapids Area Tenant Union will be hosting a Tenant Assembly on April 13th in order to not only inform tenants of their rights, but to build power amongst tenants as a means to challenge the power of landlords and property management companies. Check out the flyer included here and check the Facebook page of the Grand Rapids Area Tenant Union to find out how to register for the Tenant Assembly. You can also send an Email to the GR Area Tenant Union to request a registration form, at gratunion@gmail.com.
Palestine Solidarity Information, Analysis, Local Actions and Events for the week of January 24
It has become clear that the Israeli government will continue their assault on Gaza and the West Bank. The retaliation for the October 7 Hamas attack in Israel, has escalated, therefore, GRIID will be providing weekly links to information and analysis that we think can better inform us of what is happening, along with the role that the US government is playing. We will also provide information on local events and actions that people can get involved in. All of this information is to provide people with the capacity of what Noam Chomsky refers to as, intellectual self-defense.
Information
Biden’s support for Gaza genocide is fueling bigger war
FOR PALESTINIANS, U.S. TALK OF A “REVITALIZED” PA IN GAZA IS CODE FOR OUTSOURCED OPPRESSION
Some Palestinians in Gaza Turn to Animal Fodder for Food as Starvation Sets In
Backed by AIPAC, 62 Dems Join GOP in Condemning Genocide Case Against Israel
Gregory Shupak on Gaza and Genocide
Ironclad Support For Starving, Blinding, Shattering Children
Analysis & History
The Historical Roots of Israel’s Purge and Purify Strategy
Gaza: A Ghastly Window into the Crisis of Global Capitalism
Solidarity During a Time of Genocide: Why Gaza Matters
Local Events and Actions
Thursday, January 25 from 6 – 8pm
Documentary Night – And There Was Israel
Details at https://www.facebook.com/events/1232847551005134?ref=newsfeed
Michigan’s minimum wage is now $10.33: Why minimum wages in the US are insultingly low and the failure of partisan politics
On January 1st of this year, the minimum wage in Michigan went from $10.10 and hour to $10.33 an hour. Imagine trying to live off of this insultingly-low of a wage.
For those who are 16 or 17 in Michigan, the minimum wage is worse, landing at $8.78 an hour. For tipped wage earners, their hourly wage in $3.93 an hour, adding new meaning to the term exploitation.
The fact is that individuals and families who are paying for rent, utilities, transportation and food, cannot live off of the minimum wage in Michigan. Actually, most people can’t live off $15 an hour. And, according to the Low Income Housing Coalition, for people living in the Grand Rapids/Wyoming area, they need to earn $25.50 an hour to afford the average cost of rent in this market.
The above data helps us to properly put the housing crisis into perspective. While groups like the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce created Housing Next like to frame the housing crisis around zoning or supply and demand, the fact is that the income of most working class individuals and families is completely inadequate to afford most rental costs and the capacity to purchase a home.
What is needed in Michigan is not just more housing units, but for people to be able to earn a living wage. In addition, we need to remove housing from the free market and move towards social housing. This is one of the components of what the Rent is Too Damn High Coalition was proposing last fall, when tenants and other groups came together to make demands of state policy makers. And while Michigan Democrats were in control of state government, they fundamentally ignored these demands (listed below, with more details in this link) by not even holding a single hearing on the housing crisis last fall.
- Rent Control – Remove the state-wide ban on rent control so municipalities can take action to stabilize rents and protect tenants.
- Social Housing – $4 billion for social housing in FY25 state budget.
- Housing First – $1 billion for people experiencing and at risk of homelessness in FY25 state budget.
- A Renter’s Bill of Rights – Renters around the country are insisting on more protections against landlord abuse and empowerment of renters as a class
In 2024, Michigan Democrats are not likely to embrace the list of demands from the Rent is Too Damn High Coalition, in part because this is an election year, along with the fact that the Democrats no longer control a majority of the State House.
What the Rent is Too Damn High Coalition is proposing for 2024 is to keep pressuring the State Legislature to meet these four demands, while simultaneously hosting Tenant Assemblies across the state, with one scheduled in April right here in Grand Rapids. Right now there is an interest in building tenant power in order to achieve housing justice, especially without relying exclusively on partisan politics.
In addition, Michigan might benefit from having a state ballot initiative to dramatically raise the minimum wage. People in other states are realizing the importance of such campaigns, since partisan politics has utterly failed the public around wage increases. For nearly twenty years there has been a push to make $15 an hour the new minimum wage. However, while $15 an hour might have worked in 2000, in 2024, $15 an hour is grossly inadequate.
Right now there are currently 22 campaigns across the US to raise the minimum wage. Communities in Michigan should seriously consider such a campaign in this state, not only because of the effectiveness of the Abortion Rights ballot initiative in 2022, but primarily because most people would embrace having a livable wage and a minimum wage of no less than $25.00 an hour.
When the Democrats took control of the Michigan Legislature in 2022, they talked a great deal about wanting to put more money in the pockets of working class residents. However, for Democrats that meant adopting minor reformist economic policies, which have had little impact to create economic security for the majority of Michiganders. A $25 minimum wage ballot campaign would actually put more money into the pockets of working class people in this state and is something for organizers to seriously consider in 2025, since the minimum wage in Michigan will only be a measly $10.56 an hour. People deserve better.
Both Michigan Senators Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow vote against a resolution that would scrutinize future US military aid to Israel
On Tuesday, the US Senate voted to table a resolution introduced by Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, which would put conditions on any future US military aid to Israel. The proposed resolution is an update to the 1961 Foreign Assistance Act.
The primary question within the resolution that Sen. Sanders put forth was, “Do you support asking the State Department for information on whether human rights violations may have occurred using U.S. equipment or assistance in Israel’s current military campaign?”
The resolution, linked here, provides some political leverage that Congress could adopt. However, the resolution does not go far enough. In a statement released by Sen. Sanders he states. “This resolution is not prescriptive – it does not alter aid to Israel in any way. It simply requests that the State Department report on how our aid is being used…I hope it is not controversial to ask how U.S. weapons are being used.”
Interestingly enough, even though this resolution only shines the light on how US military aid to Israel would be used, most members of the Senate voted to table to resolution in a 72 – 11 vote. Both Michigan Senators Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow voted to table the resolution.
Part of the reason for tabling the vote is summed up well in an article from the Roll Call:
Senate Foreign Relations Chairman Benjamin L. Cardin, D-Md., made the motion to table Sanders’ motion, averting a floor vote on an issue that many Democrats wanted to avoid. Though many of them acknowledge the civilian cost of Israel’s effort to eliminate the Palestinian militant group Hamas from the Gaza Strip, they also don’t want to be seen as critics of Israel’s response to Hamas’ deadly attack on Oct. 7, 2023.
The last sentence in Sen. Cardin’s comment underscores what is at issue here…….the fact that most Democratic politicians do not want to be seen as critical of Israel. The unconditional support for Israel in the federal government is so powerful, that politicians want to avoid even the appearance of being critical of Israel. This fact is reflected in the data below, provided by Open Secrets, which shows that since 1990, the Democrats have always been the larger recipient of Pro-Israel PACs.
Palestine Solidarity Information, Analysis, Local Actions and Events for the week of January 15th
It has become clear that the Israeli government will continue their assault on Gaza and the West Bank. The retaliation for the October 7 Hamas attack in Israel, has escalated, therefore, GRIID will be providing weekly links to information and analysis that we think can better inform us of what is happening, along with the role that the US government is playing. We will also provide information on local events and actions that people can get involved in.
Information
How Israel Uses an AI Genocide Program to Obliterate Gaza
Israel blocking aid, fuel to Gaza hospitals
100 Days Into Genocide, Nearly 100,000 Palestinians Killed, Injured or Missing
ISRAEL BOMBED AN AL JAZEERA CAMERAMAN — AND BLOCKED EVACUATION EFFORTS AS HE BLED TO DEATH
Analysis & History
Watch: A collection of breakdowns and analyses of resistance videos from Gaza
Local Events and Actions
See graphic included in this post for protest at GVSU.
Direct Action/Civil Disobedience Training for Gaza
Sunday, January 21st, beginning at 2pm. Details in the link.
A military contractor in the Grand Rapids area was called out for their role in the Israeli genocidal campaign in Gaza
We are now into the fourth month of the Israeli assault on Gaza, which began immediately after the October 7 attack from Hamas.
Since that time, GRIID has posted two articles about the Israeli-owned military contractor in Walker, Michigan, known as Plasan North America.
In early November, GRIID posted a piece about the Israeli company, with information about the kinds of military contracts they have, the parts they manufacture for military vehicles, the company’s relationship with The Right Place Inc., and the company’s involvement in the statewide group called the Michigan Israel Business Bridge (MIBB).
Then in December, GRIID posted a follow up story with information on research done by the American Friends Service Committee, which published a report on military contractors that are profiting from the current Israeli 
assault on Gaza. The report included the following information for Plasan North America:
- A private Israeli military vehicle manufacturer that makes the SandCat light armored vehicle for the Israeli military. At least some of these vehicles are manufactured at the company’s factory in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
- Since Oc. 7, Plasan has delivered dozens of SandCat Tigris armored vehicles to the Israeli military and has produced “hundreds of ballistic plates every day” for its use.
- The company also makes the armor for Oshkosh’s Joint Light Tactical Vehicles (JLTVs). According to the section in the AFSC report – “In October, Israel requested to purchase 75 Oshkosh Joint Light Tactical Vehicles for its 2023 attack on Gaza.” In addition, Plasan makes AM General’s Humvees and JLTVs, which are included in the AFSC report. The Israeli military has used all of these vehicles in its 2023 attacks on Gaza.
- On Dec. 6, a U.S. cargo plane delivered Plasan-armored Humvees to Israel.
The photos that GRIID obtained from an anonymous source shows the front of the Company’s building, with a sign that says, Plasan = Genocide, paint in their windows to symbolize blood, two items wrapped in bed sheets to symbolize how Palestinians are burying their dead children, and watermelons, which are a symbol of the Palestinian resistance, a symbol that has been in use since the 1967 war.
Virtually every politician you know will misrepresent and bastardize the legacy of Dr. King today
Today we honor the legacy of the great civil rights leader, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Well, some of us will try to honor this legacy. However, the reality is that most people who have economic and political power will not authentically honor Dr. King. In fact, most of them will misrepresent his legacy to fit their own political agenda or worse, they will bastardize his legacy in the most banal ways.
For example, on Friday, January 12th, Michigan Senator Gary Peters released a video statement ahead of the federally recognized holiday Dr. King, which is today, January 15th. Here is what Sen. Peters says in this video statement:
“As we celebrate the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., it’s an important time to honor and reflect on the causes he dedicated his life to. Through his words and in his actions, Dr. King led a movement across America, inspiring us to stand up to injustice and live a life of service to others. Despite every obstacle, he held an enduring love for his country, and he believed in a better future for America. Dr. King’s lessons continue to be just as relevant today. As we live through another period in which basic rights and freedoms are under attack, we must always remember to lead by his example. On this MLK Day, let’s recommit ourselves to his cause by doing what’s right: taking action, serving our communities, and standing up for the rights of all people.”
Like virtually all politicians, Peters uses words like justice, rights, freedoms and service to others. These are warm and fuzzy words, but they are meaningless unless they are attached to actions and context, which Senator Peters fails to address. In fact, the only thing that Senator Peters provides a definitive statement about regarding Dr. King is this, “Despite every obstacle, he held an enduring love for his country, and he believed in a better future for America.”
This is a perfect example of what I mean by the bastardization of Dr. King’s message. Peters makes it seem as if after everything the civil rights leader endured – the persecution, the beatings, the arrests, the constant death threats, government surveillance, jailing and his eventual assassination, that Dr. King was committed to loving the USA. Therefore, what I would like to do is a simple comparison to what Dr. King was all about in words and in actions, then compare that to what Senator Peters is all about in words and actions, by looking at major themes that both men were committed to.
Militarism
Dr. King was fundamentally opposed to militarism and violence. In his famous 1967 speech at Riverside Church, he came out against the US war in Vietnam, stating: “As I have walked among the desperate, rejected, and angry young men, I have told them that Molotov cocktails and rifles would not solve their problems… But they asked, and rightly so, ‘what about Vietnam?’ They asked if our own nation wasn’t using massive doses of violence to solve its problems, to bring about the changes it wanted. Their questions hit home, and I knew that I could never again raise my voice against the violence of the oppressed in the ghettos without having first spoken clearly to the greatest purveyor of violence in the world today: my own government.”
Senator Peters is deeply committed to militarism. He sits on the Senate Armed Forces Committee, has voted for every Department of Defense Budget since he became a Senator, has unconditionally supported the US sending billions to Ukraine since the Russia invasion, and has unconditionally supported the US role in perpetuating the Israeli occupation of Palestine, along with the current genocidal campaign against Gaza and the West Bank. These are just two examples of US militarism that Senator Peters supports, although the list is much longer.
Capitalism
Dr. King’s view of Capitalism evolved during his lifetime, especially after he shifted his emphasis from the South to the North, moving to Chicago. While working on a housing campaign in Chicago, Dr. King stated:
“You can’t talk about solving the economic problem of the Negro without talking about billions of dollars. You can’t talk about ending the slums without first saying profit must be taken out of slums. You’re really tampering and getting on dangerous ground because you are messing with folk then. You are messing with captains of industry. Now this means that we are treading in difficult water, because it really means that we are saying that something is wrong with capitalism.”
In addition, it is important to note that Dr. King always discussed economic priorities and structural poverty. In his Beyond Vietnam Speech, Dr. King stated the following two points:
“A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death.”
“On the one hand we are called to play the good Samaritan on life’s roadside; but that will be only an initial act. One day we must come to see that the whole Jericho road must be transformed so that men and women will not be constantly beaten and robbed as they make their journey on life’s highway. True compassion is more than flinging a coin to a beggar; it is not haphazard and superficial. It comes to see that an edifice which produces beggars needs restructuring.”
Senator Peters is fundamentally committed to defending the system of Capitalism, by supporting the massive tax breaks for the billionaire class, by supporting corporate welfare/subsidies, and by not fighting to pass a livable wage law in the US. Sure, Senator Peters has provided moderate support to some of the more mainstream unions, but that support has been primarily rhetorical and he has no problem accepting campaign contributions from rich people and private corporations that exploit the working class.
Policing in the US
Dr. King was often the subject of arrests, based on the number of marches, sit-ins and other protests he engaged in over the years, from the Montgomery Bus boycotts of the late the 1950s through his support of the Memphis Sanitation workers strike. Dr. King was arrested dozens of time for deliberately violating laws that protected and propped up systems of oppression. During his 1963 March on Washington Speech, King said, “We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality.” While sitting in a jail in Alabama, Dr. King also made an astute observation about the function of policing, stating, “ It is true that the police have exercised a degree of discipline in handling the demonstrators. In this sense they have conducted themselves rather “nonviolently” in public. But for what purpose? To preserve the evil system of segregation.”
Senator Peters has always been a defender of policing in the US, even after the massive national uprising against policing in the summer of 2020, culminating in the riots after the police murder of George Floyd. In 2021 and 2022, Senator Peters pushed for legislation that would provide more funding to police departments across the country, along with incentives for police recruiting. Senator Peters had the full support of the National Fraternal Order of Police, one of the largest and most notorious police unions in the country.
How to work for change?
From the Montgomery bus boycotts right up to his assassination, Dr. King put most of his emphasis on how to make change by active participation in social movements. Dr. King historically centered his work within what is often called the Civil Rights Movement or the Black Freedom Struggle, but he also was part of the economic justice and the anti-war movements as well. Dr. King engaged in marches, sit-ins, boycotts, worker strikes, civil disobedience and numerous ways of disrupting business as usual, even shutting down highways.
For Senator Peters, as a politician, primarily has focused on encouraging people to vote and to make campaign contributions.
As you can see, just from the examples I have provided here, there are virtually no similarities between Senator Peters and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. We should put all politicians to the test and make comparisons to what they say and do, with what Dr. King did and said, especially beyond the I have a Dream rhetoric.
Palestine Solidarity Information, Analysis, Local Actions and Events for the week of January 9th
It has become clear that the Israeli government will continue their assault on Gaza and the West Bank. The retaliation for the October 7 Hamas attack in Israel, has escalated, therefore, GRIID will be providing weekly links to information and analysis that we think can better inform us of what is happening, along with the role that the US government is playing. We will also provide information on local events and actions that people can get involved in. Lastly, it is important to note that this is one of most important and urgent human rights issues that those of us in the US can impact. Get informed and take action!
Information
US uses humanitarian aid to prolong Gaza genocide https://electronicintifada.net/blogs/maureen-clare-murphy/us-uses-humanitarian-aid-prolong-gaza-genocide
It’s Not Just Bullets and Bombs. https://znetwork.org/znetarticle/its-not-just-bullets-and-bombs/
A ‘Genocidal Maniac’: What is Netanyahu’s Ultimate Goal in the Middle East?
Biden’s selective humanity https://electronicintifada.net/content/bidens-selective-humanity/43521
STATE DEPARTMENT: ISRAEL “MUST NOT” PURSUE “MASS DISPLACEMENT OF PALESTINIANS FROM GAZA” https://theintercept.com/2024/01/03/state-department-mass-displacement-palestinians/.
500 Jewish Californians and Allies Shut Down the State Capitol, Demanding Ceasefire in Gaza
Suppliers of the Israel Defense Forces Are Doing Profitable Business Throughout the US https://jacobin.com/2024/01/idf-arms-suppliers-contractors-bds-gaza
Biden Sticks by Israel as Bloody War on Gaza Threatens to Expand https://truthout.org/articles/biden-sticks-by-israel-as-bloody-war-on-gaza-threatens-to-expand/
Analysis & History
Palestine, the Harvard Controversy, and Attacks on Academic Freedom https://znetwork.org/zvideo/palestine-the-harvard-controversy-and-attacks-on-academic-freedom/
The myth of Israel’s ‘democracy’ w/Ilan Pappé | The Chris Hedges Report https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1PKlV1JMBU
Local Events and Actions
See graphic included in this post.
Direct Action/Civil Disobedience Training for Gaza, Sunday, January 21st, beginning at 2pm. Details in the link. https://www.facebook.com/events/3625704801046874?ref=newsfeed
West Michigan group to host Palestinian Speaker Series
The Holland-based group Kairos USA is hosting three Palestinian speakers virtually, specifically to address the current Israeli assault on Gaza and the larger context of the Israeli occupation of Palestine.
The three speakers are:
Mustafa Barghouti, a Palestinian physician, activist, and politician who serves as General Secretary of the Palestinian National Initiative (PNI). He has been a member of the Palestinian Legislative Council since 2006 and is also a member of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Central Council. In 2007, Barghouti was Minister of Information in the Palestinian unity government. January 11, 2024, at 1:00 p.m.
Register Here For Mustafa Barghoti (Deadline January 9)
(Registrants will receive a link on January 10.)
Omar Razzaz, a Jordanian politician who served as the 42nd Prime Minister of Jordan from June, 2018 to October 12, 2020. Born in Al-Salt, Razzaz began his schooling in Amman, later continuing his studies abroad. He has been director of several national and international institutions and Minister of Education before his designation as Prime Minister. January 17, 2024, at 1:00 p.m.
Register Here For Omar Razzaz (Deadline Jan. 15 -Registrants will receive a link on January 16.)
Dr. Hanan Ashrawi, a former member of the PLO’s Leadership Committee, serving as the official spokesperson of the Palestinian delegation during the Madrid Peace Conference of 1991. In 1996, she was appointed as the Palestinian Authority Minister of Higher Education and Research. Hanan was elected to the Palestinian Legislative Council representing Jerusalem in 1996 and was re-elected in 2006. She was elected as member of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in 2009 and 2018, becoming the body’s first female member. January 18, 12 Noon
Register Here for Dr. Ashrawi (Deadline Jan. 16)
(Registrants will receive a link on January 17.)
Grand Rapids Institute for Information Democracy 