SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 2024

Weekend Reading

Dear Friend,

Thank you to everyone who made a gift during our supporter drive—and to all who help fund our work throughout the year. Your generosity helps deliver humanitarian relief in times of crisis. It also helps communities across the U.S. and around the world do the long-term work needed to bring systemic change and enduring peace. We appreciate your support.

Here are this week's picks to inform and support your activism:

An update from AFSC staff in Rafah: [link removed] As Israeli forces prepare to invade Rafah, AFSC’s Serena Awad describes the situation facing Palestinians in Gaza. Rafah now hosts over 1.5 million displaced people, including AFSC staff and their families. “If you just walk in the street, you will hear everyone saying, where should we go now?” she says. “No one has an answer.” To learn more about the humanitarian situation in Gaza, see this Al Jazeera interview with AFSC's Joyce Ajlouny. [link removed]‘Everyone is hungry in Gaza today’:Aid group

Tell Meta: Don’t censor our speech!: [link removed] The powerful voices of Palestinians and allies on social media have been a lifeline over more than four months of Israel’s attacks on Gaza. But right now, Meta is considering a policy to further silence criticism of Israel’s actions. It wants to shut down conversations involving the term “Zionist.” That won’t make any of us safer. Instead, it will undermine efforts to dismantle real antisemitism and all forms of racism and bigotry. Join AFSC and partners in speaking out against this proposal!

New AFSC study shows strong support for engagement and diplomacy with North Korea and China: [link removed] As conflicts escalate around the world, most people in the U.S want to see peaceful interventions and nonviolent engagement. Those are the findings from AFSC's latest survey. Read more about the results from AFSC’s Beth Hallowell.

The Democrats’ hard-right turn on immigration is a disaster in every way: [link removed] Last week, Senate Democrats threw their support behind a bill that would allow the president to shut down the border. The bill would also have doubled the budget for immigration enforcement. That's despite hundreds of migrants dying every year trying to reach the United States. But this inhumane approach to migration isn't new. The U.S. strategy of “prevention through deterrence” has been going on for decades, said AFSC’s Pedro Rios. (The Nation)

Sending love to Gaza: [link removed] Thank you to everyone who took part in our efforts to send Valentines to Gaza over the past week! We loved seeing all your photos and messages of solidarity. Watch this Facebook video to see snapshots from the week, including a few from our advocacy visits on Capitol Hill.

AFSC mourns the passing of Sudanese human rights defender Enass Muzamel: [link removed] Enass, a partner of AFSC’s Salama Hub, worked tirelessly to support active participation among women and youth in policymaking in Sudan. When the current conflict in Sudan broke out in 2023, she was forced to flee Khartoum. Despite her own situation, Enass continued to support critical humanitarian relief to the people of Sudan. She also kept calling on the international community to push for an end to the violence in Sudan.

Pilgrimage for Peace (Now through Feb. 21): [link removed] Faith leaders, activists, and artists are now on a journey to the White House in Washington, D.C. Together, we are urging President Biden to call for an end to the war in Palestine and to halt all weapons funding to Israel. Instead, the U.S. must channel efforts toward increasing humanitarian aid to Palestine. Learn more about the pilgrimage, including how you can join us along the way.

Special thanks to our monthly donors, our Partners for Peace, for their ongoing support to make all our work possible.

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American Friends Service Committee
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Philadelphia, PA 19102
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