Freedom Summer 2006 - Building Bridges
Why Palestine?
Palestine is a place where you can not only learn valuable lessons in community organizing around non-violent
resistance, but can experience first-hand a place where people are resisting occupation every day. Palestine needs
internationals to support their demonstrations, to help protect their land, and to support their continuation of
everyday life, such as going to school or getting through a checkpoint.
Why Now?
Now more than ever, Palestinians need an international presence to ensure that the lives of average Palestinians and not
their governmental leaders are the focus of world-wide attention. When the Israeli government says they are going to
"Starve" the Palestinian government, they are really intending to starve the Palestinian people.
The world believes that Israeli Occupation ended with the Gaza pullout. It is important for internationals to witness
the continued settlement expansion on Palestinian land in the West Bank, and the insatiable appetite of Israel for
Palestinian land.
International Volunteers with ISM's Freedom Summer 2006 will stand side by side villagers in places like Bil'in as they
continue their tireless struggle to save village land from Israel's apartheid wall.
When international volunteers are not standing with Palestinian non-violent protesters, the Israeli occupying forces
often uses live ammunition against them.
Volunteers will also serve as human rights monitors in the Hebron neighbourhood of Tel Rumeida, where Palestinian
children are harassed on their way to school daily by settlers, and in the small village of Qawawis, where shepherds and
farmers face regular intimidation from soldiers and the occupants of three surrounding hilltop settlements.
This is also a form of non-violent resistance.
During Israeli Military invasions in like those of Balata Refugee Camp volunteers will accompany the emergency medical
teams who risk there lives to treat the wounded and the ill camp. Last but not least we need volunteers in the ISM media
office doing support work for activists out in the field.
The power of visiting Palestine during this difficult time is that volunteers witness first-hand the suffering, the
courage and the generosity of the Palestinian people under Israeli occupation rather than just seeing the sanitised
media view. Experiencing the reality of the situation as a eyewitness experience will equip you with the facts to
highlight the issue with others and influence opinions in your home countries.
Your presence in Palestine this summer, for a week or for three months is an important part of building bridges Between
the West and the East.
Freedom Summer 2006 will run from July 2 until the August 5 with volunteer training sessions to be held every weekend,
July 2-3, 9-10, 16-17, 23-24, and 30-31.