Hedy Epstein remembers the Kristallnacht in Germany; the anti-semitism in school, the revocation of German citizenship, the burning of synagogues, and males over 16 being sent away to concentration camps. She has visited the Israeli Occupied West Bank five times since 2003 participating in several non-violent demonstrations in opposition to Israeli government policies towards the Palestinian people.
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Rabbi Lynn Gottlieb, Shomer Shalom Network - "Nous invitons les croyants à se réunir en tant que groupe distinct participant à la Marche de la liberté à Gaza. En tant que croyants, nous marchons en prière et en pèlerinage pour rencontrer les Palestiniens de Gaza et pour réclamer l'ouverture des frontières. Parce que les frontières sont fermées, un tiers des enfants palestiniens de Gaza vont parmi les décombres de la guerre sans chaussures aux pieds."
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Ministère des Affaires Populairesor MAP, is an award-winning Rap group from the city of Lille, in northern France. The group plays an eclectic rap that clearly reflects its northern roots - accordion, worker rap, influence of Rai and use of Ch' Ti, the local dialect. Its name pokes fun at the politicians who are too busy taking care of their own affairs than the people's business.
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Naoto Amaki: "“I think this trip to Gaza with the Gaza Freedom March will be the most memorable trip of my life, both during my diplomatic days and after I became an independent diplomat.” Amaki is a veteran Japanese diplomat. He was fired after expressing his opposition to the US-led war on Iraq in two official telegrams to the Japanese government.
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Alice Walker is an acclaimed poet, short story writer, novelist, essayist, anthologist, teacher, editor, publisher, womanist and activist. She won a Pulitzer Price for her stunning novel The Color Purple. Alice traveled to Gaza with CODEPINK in March 2009 for International Women’s Day and wrote a stirring account of
her visit here.
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Helga Mankovitz is a retired computer programmer from Kingston, Ontario. After the Israeli invasion in Jenin in 2002 she became aware of the need for volunteers to monitor the situation in the occupied territories, to give moral support to the increasingly isolated Palestinians, to learn and to tell their stories back home and to advocate for an end to the occupation. She went to the West Bank in 2003, 2004 and 2007. Now she is joining the Gaza Freedom March hoping to hasten the end of the blockade.
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Duraid Lahham is a leading Syrian comedian and director based in Damascus, Syria. Lahham served as UNICEF's Goodwill Ambassador to the Middle East and North Africa region from 1999-2004. In 2004, he visited districts of Southern Lebanon that had been liberated from Israeli occupation, and gave a speech at a press conference criticizing the policies of George W. Bush and Ariel Sharon. He was relieved of his duties shortly after.
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David Heap: is a parent of two and a life-long peace and social justice activist. A UWO faculty member (French & linguistics), he is particularly interested in connecting with academics and students at the universities in Gaza. He hopes to help foster people-to-people links which build solidarity with Palestine.
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