| The latest on the blogs | August 31, JVP E-Newsletter - JVP supports academic freedom
- Getting ready for the High Holidays: A commitment to justice for the New Year
- There is still time to join JVP's olive harvest delegation!
- Bottling olive oil in the Bay Area
- Donors triple JVP fundraising request
JVP supports academic freedom.
After losing tenure because of an unprecedented campaign of outside interference led byAlan Dershowitz, who has no academic background in Middle East orIsraeli history or politics, DePaul University has decided to cancel controversial Professor NormanFinkelstein'sclasses and shut down his office. This despite overwhelming approval ofhis scholarship by his peers, and aremaining one-yearcontract.
Carrying signs in support of academic freedom, JVP-Chicago activistsjoined students and professors in a protest today at DePaul Universityin solidarity with Norman Finkelstein and Mehrene Larudee, who's tenurewas also inexplicably denied. There's more to come this Wednesday, whenclasses begin. Getting ready for the High Holidays: A commitment to justice for the New Year
For centuries, Jews have been casting their "sins" into the water during Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, in a ceremony called "Tashlich." For most Jews, this is a private act of contrition, symbolized by throwing bits of stale bread into a nearby river or lake.
Jews and non-Jews, are invited to join us in Chicago, Seattle, and Philadelphia.
In Chicago, JVPers will will set small paper boats ablaze and cast them into the water. Each boat will represent a transgression inherent in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. These transgressions will include land theft, home demolitions, death of innocent civilians, and the indiscriminate use of weapons such as cluster bombs. [Sunday, September 16 at 3:00 pm at the Dammrich Rowing Center, 3220 W. Oakton, Skokie. For more information: lynnpollack@ameritech.net]
In Seattle, JVPers will reflect on their actions and inactions of the past year and reaffirm their commitment to end the Israeli occupation. [Sunday, September 16th, 12-2pm; ritual begins at 12pm, Madrona Park Beach, 853 Lake Washington Blvd, accessible from East Madison St. or Madrona Dr., ACCESS: Metro Bus #2. For more information: seattle@ewishvoiceforpeace.org]
In Philadelphia, JVPers will cast away the sins of the Israeli occupation with prayer, poetry, and song [Tuesday, September 13, at 4.30 pm, West River Drive, near parking lot 5, between Montgomery and Sweetbriar. For more information: philly@jvp.org]
There is still time to join JVP's olive harvest delegation!
The deadline for registration is September 15 and the trip will take place between October 20 and November 3. If you want to see the realities of the occupation on the ground and do something about it, this is your chance.
Bottling olive oil in the Bay Area
On Sunday, August 5, JVP-Bay Area came together for another afternoon of bottling Palestinian olive oil. Close to 500 bottles were processed. This was the first time that the bottling took place in a synagogue (thanks to the Kehilla community!) Every dime generated for the sale of this olive oil goes back to the people who are suffering the most from the Occupation.In the past these sales of Fair Trade (and this time Organic) olive oil have funded hunger projects in Gaza, provided seed money for Palestinian women to start small businesses, and helped the Refuser movement. This time the money will go to the village of Tuwani. Despite the many hardships the population there endures, their main concern is the children. It is their priority to provide the children some respite from the trauma they live under by building a playground.
We do not have the capacity to do mail order for the oil so we can only sell it locally. For more information, phylece@sbcglobal.net
Donors triple JVP fundraising request
In August JVP was offered $7,500 by two anonymous JVP donors as a matching grant. We turned to your, our members, subscribers and donors to come through for us, and you did it in a big way. Thanks to you, we not only made the match, we nearly tripled it! Thirty of you donated at the major donor level of $250 or more and seventeen of you became new major donors. Hundreds of you responded and every donation, regardless of amount helped us achieve this terrific success and we are so appreciative.
Your donation not only supports our work but also lets us know the depth of support we have in our challenging task of changing US Mideast policy. That support doesn't just pay the bills, it gives us the energy to keep on going! Thank you all so much for responding.
|
