Seeds of Nakba
The Continued Plight of Palestinian Refugees
18 May 2011 ~ 7:00 PM
Entrance: $10
Alwan for the Arts (16 Beaver Street, #501, NY, NY)
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=168628983193897
Sunday, 15 May 2011 will mark the 63rd anniversary of the 1948 Nakba, or catastrophe. While the Nakba is commonly referred to as the year in which Palestinians were exiled and dispossessed of their land and the state of Israel was established, the Nakba is an ongoing and continuous phenomenon that both pre-dates 1948 and continues today. The Nakba persists due to Zionism and its many oppressive and racist manifestations. Palestinians continue to resist the Nakba and all is forms while remaining steadfast to their demands: end the occupation, apartheid and the siege on Gaza, and adhere to the right of return.
One of the most tragic effects of the 1948 Nakba is Palestinian refugees—Nakba’s children. There are now over 4.8 million registered UNRWA Palestinian refugees scattered throughout the Arab world including Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, the West Bank and Gaza. Palestinian refugees comprise the longest-lasting and largest refugee population in the world today. For over six decades, Palestinian refugees have been living in legal limbo, denied compensation, or their most human rights both internationally and in their respective host states—particularly for Palestinian refugees in Lebanon. On this 63rd anniversary we acknowledge yet another year of Palestinian suffering and resistance.
Al Awda NY invites you for an evening to both remember and discuss the continued plight of Palestinian refugees, particularly focusing on legal and humanitarian issues.
New Addition to the Panel!! Awad Abdel Fattah, Secretary General of the National Democratic Assembly (NDA), Altajamoa, will discuss the plight of Palestinians in Israel. The NDA, a democratic political party that operates among Palestinians in Israel, holds three seats in the Israeli parliament, the Knesset. It was established in 1995 with a platform that emphasizes the rights of the Palestinian minority in Israel to full civil and national equality. It calls for a state of all its citizens, the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, and the Right of Return of the Palestinian refugees.
Nada Khader, Executive Director of the WESPAC Foundation, will discuss the Nakba, then and now.
Lamis Deek, Esq. will discuss the legal context of Palestinian refugees under international and humanitarian law and refugee conventions.
Jennifer Loewenstein, Professor at the University of Wisconsin, will discuss the humanitarian conditions of Palestinian refugees, particularly in Gaza and Lebanon.
Mirene Ghossein, cultural and political activist, will discuss the The Art of Palestinian Children, a traveling exhibition of paintings by Palestinian children living in Lebanon. Paintings will be sold.
A closing reception will follow with a live Oud performance.
Proceeds will be donated to the LEAP Program–an educational empowerment program that aims to re-inspire and motivate refugee-youth to become their own agents of change through education by supporting their intellectual and creative growth and facilitating college exchange and scholarship programs. LEAP is strictly a volunteer-run program and all donations go directly to support opportunities for its youth.
For more information please visit www.al-awdany.org
or email us at info@al-awdany.org
