#BDS: ‘Israeli Occupation Awareness Week’ comes to Brandeis, Boston

Next week at Brandeis University, Students for Justice in Palestine and Jewish Voice for Peace will be co-hosting Israeli Occupation Awareness Week. From November 8th to November 12th, BSJP and JVP will be bringing an array of exciting speakers, including Professor Noam Chomsky, in order to raise awareness about the Israeli occupation of Palestine. On Monday, Elisha Baskin, an Israeli, and Emily Schick, an American, will discuss their roles as activists against the occupation in Palestine. In addition the film “Slingshot Hip-Hop” will be shown. On Tuesday afternoon, a Palestinian farmer Daoud Nassar will speak in opposition to the growing Israeli settlements in the West Bank. In the evening, Alice Rothchild, from American Jews for a Just Peace, will lead a discussion on the Jewish Community’s role in supporting the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement. On Wednesday, Diana Buttu, a former negotiator for the Palestine Liberation Organization, will discuss legal perspectives on the occupation. On Thursday afternoon, we will screen two movies from the Boston Palestine Film Festival, “To Shoot an Elephant,” and “East Side Story.” After this film screening will be the keynote speaker of the week, Professor Noam Chomsky who will discuss the escalating policies of apartheid and his new book, Gaza in Crisis: Reflections on Israel's War Against the Palestinians. Brandeis University, America’s only non-sectarian Jewish University, has long been a hotbed of controversy on matters related to the conflict in Israel-Palestine. In contrast to conventional wisdom, the student body does not fall lock step in line with AIPAC, the ADL, and other un-nuanced approaches to the State of Israel and the Palestinian people. We do not support the increasingly racist policies of the State of Israel towards its own citizens, nor do we support the occupation of the West Bank, the Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem. We are young Jews, Muslims and Christians: Palestinians, Israelis, Americans, Europeans and others. We envision Israel and Palestine as a place of justice, and we hold Israel accountable for its military occupation. Peace can proceed when all Palestinians reclaim their rights to free movement, land water, a home, a fair trial, cultural preservation, national identity and democratic representation. For more information contact: Jon Sussman jsuss@brandeis.edu Liza Behrendt Jewishvoiceforpeace@brandeis.edu Noam Shuster bsjp@brandeis.edu