Nonviolent Resistance in Palestine
Ministry Center, Founders Room
Our Lady Queen of Peace Parish
2700 S. 19th Street
Arlington, VA
Join Daoud Nassar and his wife for a discussion of the current situation in Palestine. Kent Beduhn from 8th Day faith community (Church of the Saviour) will provide music.
The Nassar family is one of the last Christian Palestinian families living and working in the fertile hill country south of Bethlehem.
The family’s farm, Daher’s Vineyard was named for Daher Nassar,who purchased the land in 1924. Daoud is one of eight grandchildren of Daher. The Nassar’s farm stands alone, ringed by Jewish settlements and the encroaching Separation Wall, the last holdout in a region marked for annexation by Israel. The Israeli government has offered millions for the land and safe passage out of Palestine, but the family remains steadfast. “This land is our mother,” says Daoud. “Our mother is not for sale. Under his leadership, the family has taken the case to establish the family’s land rights all the way to the Israeli Supreme Court.
So far, the fight to save their land has cost the family over $130,000. While fighting their case and continuing to farm the land (including the ongoing project to replace the 400+ olive trees illegally uprooted by the neighboring Israeli settlers), and in order to demonstrate their commitment to peace and coexistence, the family has established “The Tent of Nations” providing arts, drama, and education to the children of the villages and refugee camps of the region.
Daoud and his family have also established a Women’s Educational Center in the adjacent Palestinian village of Nahalin, offering classes in computer literacy, English, and leadership training. Volunteers from several countries are a constant presence on the land. The Tent of Nations has received recognition and at least one award from European Union nations. Now is the time to bring the message to the U.S.
Besides the courageous, unique and inspiring example of non-violent resistance to the Israeli Occupation represented by this family, which makes it a worthy cause in its own right, the survival of this Palestinian farm holds great significance for the dignity and survival of the people of Palestine and for the non-violent struggle for human rights everywhere.
