Rachel Corrie Anniversary

[msheesha 548]

Today is the 8th anniversary of Rachel Corrie's death.

From the Rachel Corrie Foundation for Peace and Justice....

Rachel Corrie

Rachel Corrie

Rachel Corrie was a 23-year-old American peace activist from Olympia, Washington, who was crushed to death by an Israeli bulldozer on 16 March 2003, while undertaking nonviolent direct action to protect the home of a Palestinian family from demolition.

Since her killing, an enormous amount of solidarity activities have been carried out in her name around the world.

Rachel’s journals and emails from her time in Palestine are available in a variety of forms. They have been published in books, turned into plays and dramatic readings, and used around the internet. They are not always reproduced in their entirety and we have collected them here, un-cut, for easier reading. Read Rachel’s emails from Palestine.

Link to the page...

http://rachelcorriefoundation.org/rachel

[PalestineMyHeart 1,897]

Thank you for posting this, Msheesha

Her courage is not forgotten in Palestine.

With the Nasrallahs, the family whose home she was trying to protect from being destroyed

Candles for Rachel

Wall art in Gaza

Memorial march in Gaza

Rachel's parents visit Gaza

[carlita84 1]

Thank You for posting those pictures. What a brave girl to do what she did. I say girl because she was just a girl..23.

[msheesha 548]

I agree. Thank you for posting the pictures. I think we should all remember her today. If all of us had just a touch of the bravery and selflessness she did, the world would be a much better place.

Edited March 16, 2011 by msheesha

[PalestineMyHeart 1,897]

Rachel's parents speak out today:

On Wednesday, March 16th, we mark the eighth anniversary of our daughter Rachel’s stand in Rafah, Gaza, to protect the right of a Gazan family to be safe and secure in their home and the rights of all Palestinians to self-determination, freedom, equality, and security in the same measure as their Israeli neighbors.

Here in Olympia, Washington – our hometown and Rachel’s – our family, the Rachel Corrie Foundation for Peace and Justice, and our community will mark this anniversary with an event that emphasizes three components: community-building, education, and action. Strengthening community connections was important to Rachel when she lived and worked here in Olympia, but, also, beyond, as she embraced the world as her community. As we pursue a more just global community, we must arm ourselves with solid information and knowledge. Rachel believed this profoundly and emphasized in her writing from Gaza the importance of seeking and communicating the facts and doing so without exaggeration. And it is not enough for us to think and talk. We must, also, act. Indeed, it is because of Rachel’s action on March 16, 2003, that we pause to mark this day.

As we consider where Rachel would want us to focus now, Gaza still remains high on the list. The UN Office of Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports that the number of weekly civilian injuries in Gaza was recently higher than it has been for any week since May 2010. The number includes injuries to five children. During the week of February 20-26, imports from Israel into Gaza were only 36 percent of the average amount that entered weekly before Israel imposed its blockade of Gaza in 2007. Exports and movement of people in and out of the Strip remain severely restricted. Collective punishment of the 1.7 million residents of Gaza by the Israeli government and military continues. We must, therefore, continue to focus on improving their situation and ending the blockade and siege under which they have suffered for so many years.

The rest here at Mondoweiss, including their video