1. Right of Return Sharen Abdallah Tasneem Abdallah Rawan Dissi Crystal Garibay Rochelle Rich Ana Rueda Yesica Ruiz Abelardo Vazquez Philosophy 107 FF Professor Kuzniar May 12, 2009
2. What is the Palestinian Conflict? A Palestinian country stolen from a population of 500,000 86% Muslims, 10% Christian, 4% Jewish An illegal occupation that continues until today due to an establishment of a Jewish state Zionism Biblical ties to the land Occupied under British rule; easier access
3. Palestinian Conflict con’t Palestinians rights are blatantly diminished : 1947 UN decides to give 55% of Palestine to a population of 30% Jews By 1949, 78% of Palestine was taken over 800,000 civilians displaced, 369 villages destroyed How? Widespread killings and massacres took place throughout Palestine Bombed highly populated markets Booby-trapped cars and toys Increased searches Imprisonment, rapes, and massacres were also one of the highly used tactics
5. How does the biased media contribute to this conflict? “Israel is really fighting a war on two fronts… The first is a military campaign being waged in the occupied territories against the Palestinian people… The second is a PR campaign being waged here in the U.S. through the American media…” Professor Robert Jensen , Journalism University of Texas-Austin Associated Press 2004: Study done by “If Americans Knew” 130.6% of Israeli deaths reported 108 actual deaths, 141 deaths reported 66.1% of Palestinian deaths reported 821 actual deaths, 543 deaths reported
6. U.S. Media Misreported Incidents Gaza Violence: January 27, 2009 CNN told the public that Palestinians broke the cease fire on January 27th What the media are not telling the public: In reality Israel had violated the cease fire at least 7 times. Killing at least 2 civilians Injuring at least 5 civilians For more information: www.ifamericansknew.com
7. Occupation Continues… Crime Against Humanity Gaza - overpopulated strip of land -1.5 million Palestinians reside - 50% children, 75% refugees - fenced in, nowhere to go
8. What if your rights were taken away?And you were left with no freedom, protection, no escape! Prior Assault: 2yr siege on Gaza Lack of: Electricity Energy Heat Food Medical/Lab Supplies Drugs Effects of Siege -> No protection No escape No shelter No transportation No communication No freedom of: Movement/Speech
19. Israel’s Justification Well, they saw it coming. Hamas fired 2 rockets into Israel, however … “Implementation of the current operation had gone 90% according to plan” – Shimon Peres (Israeli President) Operation Cast Lead: “A planned attack on the people of Gaza” - Mads Gilbert, Norwegian doctor “90% of our bombs have hit the intended target” – IDF "Israel's aim was to provide a strong blow to the people of Gaza so that they would lose their appetite for shooting at Israel," Peres said in the Jerusalem Post article.
20. The Role of the U.S. : What America doesn’t want you to know Dishonest Broker: Has allowed Israel to use violence and violate international law Massive military, economic & political support $$$ 1.6 Billion US tax dollars a day Illegal use of U.S. made weapons;F-16 bombs, DIME (Dense Inert Metal Explosive), White Phosphorous
21. U.S. Involvement United States - one of the leading nations to encourage, facilitate, and arbitrate cease-fire accords between Israelis and Palestinians Foster democracy and economic growth in the region Obama administration to solidly pursue a two state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict However, there have been no further improvements
22. Solutions: What Can We Do? These war crimes must be stopped Collective punishment violates international law; deserves universal condemnation Unite against the wrong and evil Stand for the good and innocent Attend protests, lectures, become involved, take action! Justice Must Be Served
23. We are forgetting … “Peace is not an absence of war, it is a virtue, a state of mind, a disposition for benevolence, confidence, and justice.” – Baruch Spinoza “We should all be reflecting on elevating the situation of our less fortunate brothers and sisters to bring peace to our part of the world that will have a ripple effect that spreads worldwide.”–Cindy Sheehan
