Rebuilding Alliance 29 October 2004
Dear Friends,
You’ve heard us say for months that The Rebuilding Alliance is working to build the home that Rachel Corrie stood to safeguard. In the spirit of Ramadan and its call to empathy, we want to let you inside our strategy to build the Nasrallah family home and help end home demolitions in Gaza.
With your encouragement, we’ve done much more than just talk about building in Gaza — we’ve gone there to forge the partnerships and set-up the procedures needed to buy land and build with integrity.
“Tell them there is hope. Let people know you can help stop this violence. You can help bring Israel back to the negotiation table.” That’s what Dr. Eyad El-Sarraj, a strong opponent of any kind of violence, said when we spoke to him by phone a few days ago. He chairs the Gaza Community Mental Health Programme and is our distinguished rebuilding partner in Gaza.
And now you can help make this first home in the Rachel Corrie Rebuilding Campaign a reality.
Please make your secure online contribution now. Click here to donate!
Will it make a difference? Just a few months ago, the village of Al Aqabah in the West Bank finished building their kindergarten with help from The Rebuilding Alliance. Now 80 children are enrolled, and the village has electricity, phones, and a new mosque. When demolition orders were issued in December and July, the Rebuilding Alliance hired the best lawyer we could find to petition the Israeli Supreme Court for the town’s safety. So far it’s working! The Separation Wall was rerouted and the homes are safe for now. Plans are in place to alert press and Congress if need arises.
We’re encouraging Americans to take in the personal stories of Palestinian families, to invest in their future by helping them rebuild homes and schools, and to defend their rights in court. And when bulldozers are coming, we know we can save those homes and schools when citizens call Congress to intervene. By building this home in Rachel’s name, and then the next, we are building momentum to prevent what Human Rights Watch called “the planned destruction of hundreds more homes” in Gaza.
There’s no secret here. Helping Palestinians keep their homes makes the world safer for us all. This recognition will draw the numbers needed to wake-up Congress, stop Ariel Sharon from demolishing more homes, and jump-start peace negotiations. But it can’t be done without your support.
Please help fund the Rachel Corrie Rebuilding Campaign in Gaza.
There is no more effective way to show Palestinian families that you believe in their right to keep their home than by helping them rebuild. Each dollar you give will be put directly to buying the land and paying for construction of the Nasrallah home, then raising the buzz to build the next home.
And we need you on the ground here, too. By spreading the word to all in your circle who want to build, not destroy, you become part of a pivotal alliance to make this violence stop.
Please set a date for your house gathering to raise funds and awareness. Your friends will appreciate the opportunity to take effective action. We’ll help arrange for a speaker and assist you every step of the way — just call us at 650 261-1232.
Thank you for all your good work and everything you will do in the weeks ahead. In constructing peace,
Donna Baranski-Walker
Executive Director
P.S. The children of the Nasrallah family wrote in the weblog at RebuildingAlliance.org
“We decided to save our home with our bodies, by living in it. Because we are innocent and never did anything to the Israeli Army, they didn’t have any reason to shoot at us. But they did shoot, many times, to force us to leave.”
The family stayed until tanks tore trenches around 3 sides of the home, damaging the foundation and cutting electricity and water. They moved 6 times since - and then their rental apartment was demolished with 90 other homes in May.
They deserve a home that won’t be destroyed - Help by contributing any amount you can give.
The Rebuilding Alliance (formerly Rebuilding Homes) received the 2003 Lewis Mumford Award for Development awarded by Architects/Designers/Planners for Social Responsibility
The Rebuilding Alliance
P.O. Box 610061
Redwood City, California 94061
United States
phone: 650 261-1232
fax: 650 261-1235
The Rebuilding Alliance is in the process of registering as a 501c3 tax-exempt organization. Please make your check out to “The Rebuilding Alliance” or to our fiscal sponsor, Global Exchange.
