By Kristin Scheer
Some 50 persons gathered March 24 to hear about the plight of Palestinians in Gaza and the heroic work that PAMA (Palestinian American Medical Association) is doing to get support into Gaza. The gathering, sponsored by PeaceWorks KC and held at All Souls Unitarian Universalist Church in KC MO, helped raise much-needed funding for PAMA. The Watermelon Band entertained us with an accordion, a washboard, and a maraca. They sang, “Free Palestine Now! No ammunition! Schools and education!” and “No more war crimes on my dime!”
Ann Suellentrop spoke of her recent pilgrimage to Japan, where she met survivors of the 1945 bombings and they vowed to work together to end nuclear weapons. She also announced a protest at the KC National Security Campus on Monday, April 15, to resist nuclear weapons. Eighty percent of the parts to build those dangerous weapons are manufactured and procured here. The resistance will kick off with a weekend of free events leading up to the protest. Get information about and register for the events at https://www.jerusalemfarm.org/ —click on “Catholic Worker Faith & Resistance Retreat KC MO.”
During the fundraiser, the street theater group MO Peace performed two theater pieces. Ann introduced herself as Tammy Tik Tik, CNNN media influencer, and introduced Tommy was US Sen.Josh Hawley–“Boo!” said the audience. With humor and wit, MO Peace took the opportunity to say, “Most of the world is appalled that you are paying Israel billions of dollars to blockade medical supplies and carpet-bomb cities packed with children. … Even in the face of incessant mass media propaganda, most actual human beings want to stop the mass shootings and bombings that are being done every day by Israel and paid for by the US.”
We heard a powerful poem by Jamie Malmstrom, who says, “Palestine, we see you!” The poem is at https://peaceworkskc.org/i-stand-here/.
Fatima Mohammadi of Al-Hadaf KC, which works to alleviate the suffering of Palestinians through direct aid and education, spoke in support of Palestinians and all oppressed people. “Our struggles are united,” she said. “Structured systems are designed to oppress us. We are the heroes!” PAMA is doing work that other organizations have not been able to do, said Fatima. “They are getting doctors and medicine into Gaza.” She said those doctors are testifying that this is the worst humanitarian crisis they have ever seen. Those doctors have been to Sudan, Haiti, and Ukraine. They have seen wars, famine, earthquakes, and more, but they have never seen anything like this.
“How can we allow this to continue?” Fatima asked. “170 days into this genocide, the atrocities are numerous and horrifying. Thousands of children have been orphaned, thousands have been hospitalized or martyred. We have to stop the bleeding. The need is dire!” The March 31 New York Times said Gaza health authorities report 32,000 persons killed in Gaza since Oct. 7, and warned that famine is spreading.
Funds were raised at the March 24 event. In cash and checks we counted $942, and more was raised electronically. Anecdotally, we know of at least $100 donated through the website. Thus, during this fundraiser, KC contributed more than $1000 to alleviate suffering and resist violence against the innocents of Gaza. Thank you! If you did not get the opportunity to join us and want to help, please donate at https://palestinian-ama.org/.
—Kristin Scheer serves on the PeaceWorks KC Board. © 2024, Kristin Scheer, Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike 4.0 International License
