Nasrallah Family Journeys to the US
Rachel Corrie wrote from Gaza, “Many people want their voices to be heard, and I think we need to use some of our privilege as internationals to get those voices heard directly in the US, rather than through the filter of well-meaning internationals such as myself.”
To highlight the experience of thousands in Rafah whose homes have been demolished, Khaled, Samah, and Sama Nasrallah, whose home Rachel Corrie protected, joined Cindy and Craig Corrie in June for a national speaking tour to 22 cities in California, Oregon, Washington, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Iowa.
The Rachel Corrie Foundation supported the Nasrallah family’s US travel, and in partnership with The Rebuilding Alliance and enthusiastic local hosts, engaged Americans with stories from Palestine and rebuilding efforts in Gaza. “We believe it is important for the people of Gaza to see that Americans know what has happened to them, that we understand, and are taking responsibility for that,” said Cindy Corrie.
The nine members of the Nasrallah family lived in their home for seven months after Rachel Corrie was killed, hoping that it would be spared. On tour, Khaled Nasrallah recalled, “You just can’t imagine the bullets, they are not normal bullets. The Israelis would fire them at our house and we would hide in the bathroom because it was in the middle of the house and the bullets could go through three walls. No one was safe. Our house was endangered and no one would visit us.”
In 2004, the Nasrallah home met the fate of the 2200 surrounding ones destroyed when the Israeli military cleared a wide buffer strip along where they had constructed a steel wall near the Egyptian border. Sharing the experience of his family, Khaled Nasrallah wrote, ‘’These were very dark days through the past three years as we coped with the loss of our home. In spite of what Rachel did and what we have done after losing her, we watched day after day as the Israeli Defense Forces demolished it. It was more than a home — it was our family dream of coming together again, growing and playing in our homeland together with happiness and safety in the eyes of our children.”
Through generous donations, The Rebuilding Alliance purchased land to rebuild the Nasrallah home in Gaza, and groundbreaking took place on November 16, with visitors from the Olympia-Rafah Sister City Project looking on. The home is scheduled for completion in March 2006.
In their June tour, the Nasrallah and Corrie families connected with thousands of interested and generous Americans. In Olympia, Washington the Nasrallahs were welcomed with a proclamation from the Olympia City Council. Khaled Nasrallah was struck by the natural beauty of the area and by the kindness of the people.
“It is like a paradise — trees everywhere, forests, and the Puget Sound. We have never been in a forest, and are very grateful to have seen such beauty….I read the kindness of Olympia people in the eyes of everyone we met, at the market, at the Corrie’s home, at the reception at the museum, and at the speaking event at the church. I felt I was with my people….I feel I am leaving a family, but we are all trying to push for a noble goal together. We will all continue Rachel’s message together…We are going back to Palestine with a positive message from America… the most important impressions were of the American people. They are very kind, caring, human, open-minded, helpful, and somehow positive. Actually, I really liked them, and I hope to hold on to my relationships with all the friends I met, and I also hope to meet them in a free Palestine soon.”
Statement from Craig and Cindy Corrie 01-05-2006
We arrived in Israel and Palestine in late December for a remarkable international conference in Bethlehem, “Celebrating Nonviolent Resistance” and with intentions of traveling to Gaza early in January. Five members of the Olympia-Rafah Sister City Project were already working in Rafah at the southernmost part of the Gaza Strip–some for up to two months. They were having ongoing discussion with Palestinians about security issues. After careful consideration of the growing tensions surrounding upcoming elections and recent kidnappings, we agreed to travel to Gaza as planned, while continuing to carefully monitor the situation.
On the afternoon of January 2nd we arrived in the Gaza Strip where we anticipated spending five days reconnecting with friends and carrying out work for the Rachel Corrie Foundation for Peace and Justice and also for the Olympia-Rafah Sister City Project and The Rebuilding Alliance. We had wonderful reunions with the two families whose home our daughter Rachel Corrie tried to protect when she was killed in 2003, and with friends that we have made in the Gaza community since. [Read more…]
2005 in Review
Dear Friends,
2005 has been a brisk and full year for the Rachel Corrie Foundation and for our family. We have traveled to talk about the plight of Palestinians and have networked with those working for an end to the illegal Israeli occupation and a just, secure peace for all in the Middle East. Supported by generous hosts, we have taken our message to high schools, colleges, churches, homes, and peace and justice centers across the country.
We joined Friends of Sabeel North America at conferences in Atlanta, Austin, Cedar Falls, and Denver and the Baptist Peace Fellowship North America at their 20th annual summer conference at Linfield College in McMinnville, Oregon. In Madison, Wisconsin, we shared the stage with our Gazan friends Khaled, Samah, and Sama Nasrallah, as we all addressed a regional conference of the U.S. Campaign to End the Occupation. In Seattle and Chicago, sharing one of Rachel’s e-mails from Gaza, Cindy joined inspired activists reading powerful narratives from Howard Zinn’s and Anthony Arnove’s recently published Voices of a People’s History. During a beautiful New England October, we traveled the bucolic roads of the Granite State, speaking in several communities and lending a boost to New Hampshire Peace Action’s newly formed Palestine Education Network. With Presbyterians in Seattle and the Divestment Project in Somerville, we explained the importance of supporting selective divestment from corporations that benefit directly from the Israeli occupation; and in London, Cindy joined War on Want activists educating Oxford Street merchants about the Caterpillar boots and clothing being sold in their stores. There, too, at The Royal Court Theatre in Sloane Square, we attended sold-out performances of “My Name is Rachel Corrie,” drawn entirely from Rachel’s lifelong writings, edited by actor Alan Rickman and Kathryn Viner of Guardian International, directed by Mr. Rickman, and performed by the ex-pat American actress Megan Dodds. Craig and other family members walked the halls of the U.S. Congress and the Departments of State and Justice continuing the challenging work of seeking accountability from the U.S. Government and an independent investigation into Rachel’s killing. A host of interviews resulted in articles in publications including the Guardian Unlimited, the Los Angeles Times, and the Des Moines Register, as well as segments on CNN International, Democracy Now! and National Public Radio of Iowa.
As we flew home recently after two days of events in Pittsburgh, we read comments from Jim Wallis (Sojourners’ Magazine) who talked of Martin Luther King and how he knew that “to change the nation, you had to change the wind… change how a nation thinks and feels and perceives the most important things…and then the politicians will follow.” Through the hundreds of talks and conversations we have had this year with thoughtful and caring people, we have tried to “change the wind” — here in the U.S. and beyond.
In many ways, it is the work of the Rachel Corrie Foundation for Peace and Justice that provides the balm that soothes us as we meet the demands on other fronts. The foundation is where we dream about the possibilities Rachel imagined for connections to Palestine and where we try to emulate her creative approaches. We ask you to take a minute to review our accomplishments, our plans, and our hopes. With efforts in your own communities and with a tax deductible contribution to enhance the work of the Rachel Corrie Foundation for Peace and Justice, you can make your own commitment to a just peace in the Middle East. We urge you to consider both. We thank you for your enduring interest and support and hope that as we near the end of 2005, that your heart, too, may be filled with the promise of a new year.
Salaam, Shalom, Peace,
Cindy and Craig Corrie
Remarks about Rachel by her family
The following speech was written by the family of Rachel Corrie and read on Saturday, April 12, 2003 at numerous peace rallies around the world. Rachel was an accomplished writer and cared deeply about working for justice and peace in the world. [Read more…]
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