Author: Tracy Abell

Let’s Turn Refaat Alareer’s “If I Must Die” into a Bestseller

/ Tracy Abell / 19 Comments

One year ago today, Palestinian writer, poet, and educator Refaat Alareer was targeted and murdered by an Israeli airstrike. I wrote about him here. Today, I received a text message from Ryan Grim and Jeremy Scahill of independent Drop Site News regarding the posthumous publication of Refaat’s poetry and prose collection on December 10. Here is that message:

Today marks one year since Israel assassinated Palestinian Poet, Writer, and Educator Refaat Alareer in a targeted airstrike. On December 10th, Refaat’s book, “If I Must Die,” a collection of his poetry and prose compiled by his friend and former student, Yousef Ajamal, will be published by OR Books.

We’re asking all of our readers, if they can, to pre-order the book in an effort to drive it on to the best seller rankings. Not only is it a truly magnificent piece of writing, a book you’ll be glad to own and/or gift, seeing Refaat’s book at the top of the charts will be a small sign to Palestinians facing genocide that the world has not forgotten them – and it will send a message to his assassins that we haven’t forgotten them either. For our part, we will be buying 535 copies and hand-delivering them to each member of the House and Senate.

Pre-order Refaat’s book here: https://bookshop.org/p/books/if-i-must-die-poetry-and-prose/21530923?ean=9781682196212

UPDATE 12.17.24: DO NOT order from Amazon as scammers took note of the situation and are selling non-authentic books. PLEASE order from bookshop.org at above link.

Tracy here again: I’m editing to add that you can also request your library system purchase the book. In my system, “Suggest a purchase” tab is located under SERVICES. In “additional information we might need,” you can include EAN/UPC 9781682196212 and “the book will be released on December 10, 2024.”

Edited to add: all proceeds will go to Refaat’s remaining family.

UPDATE: see my December 29 post for good news!!!

When I read that message, so many emotions came up. Grief over Refaat’s death, outrage that the genocide continues, and gratitude for this plan to show the besieged Palestinian people that we care. If you’re able, I hope you’ll consider helping this effort by pre-ordering the book. Just yesterday, I wrote about the orchestrated efforts to shut down pro-Palestinian speech and actions. Elevating “If I Must Die” to the bestseller list would be a huge middle finger to those desperately trying to normalize genocide, starvation, destruction, and land theft.

Drop Site also sent a lengthier, more detailed email about Refaat, the targeting of poets and intellectuals, and the ins and outs of the publishing industry’s bestseller “process.” The following is that email:

Today marks one year since Israel assassinated Palestinian writer, poet and educator Refaat Alareer with a targeted airstrike on the second floor apartment where he was taking refuge with extended family. The strike also killed his brother, his brother’s son, his sister and her three children.

Israel’s targeting of poets and intellectuals was not new, but his killing struck a chord around the world, as Refaat had committed his life to the study and practice of the English language, believing it to be a tool of liberation and empowerment. Through his work and his interviews, he gathered a global audience of admirers.

After he was killed, his poem “If I Must Die” became a worldwide viral sensation, a window into the soul of the man who’d been ripped from the world.

On December 10, Refaat will posthumously publish a book, “If I Must Die,” a collection of his poetry and prose, which also includes excerpts of important interviews he gave, compiled by his friend and student Yousef Aljamal.

As a small measure of justice, we want to turn Refaat’s book into what it desperately deserves to be: an international bestseller. We need your help and we have just five days to make it happen.

First, sign this pledge to buy the book this coming Tuesday. We’ll send you an email to remind you to do it that day. Enter your phone number if you want a text reminder too, but it’s not necessary. We won’t sell or share your contact info. The royalties from the book go to Refaat’s family. But more importantly, pre-order it now at bookshop.org or Amazon.

SIGN THE PLEDGE TODAY!

Here’s the background: The publishing industry cares most about the Amazon ranking and the New York Times best seller list. Depending on the day, a book can hit the top of the charts on Amazon with as few as 10,000 copies sold. But they cannot be bulk orders: Anything more than nine probably gets flagged as a bulk order. If you do want to make a bulk order, do it from an independent bookstore online, not from Amazon. (Amazon will certainly flag it as bulk.)

The NYT list is an opaque combination of in-person and online sales from Amazon, big retailers like Barnes and Noble, and indie stores.

Paid pre-orders count toward the rankings.

So here’s what to do: If you can only buy one book, pre-order it either from bookshop.org or Amazon, whichever is your preference. If you can buy three, buy one from each.

Initially, we had urged people to buy it on the date it comes out, and not pre-order, but so many people have pledged that OR Books, which is a small publisher, is now worried it will sell out on Tuesday. The way around that problem is to get your pre-order in now.

If you can throw a few hundred dollars at this effort, buy up to nine from each of those platforms and give them away. (That would cost you about $650.)

If you really want to do a bulk order of more than nine and maximize the chance it gets counted in the rankings, do it through an independent bookstore and not Amazon (which will flag it as a bulk order).

If you buy it from a bookstore in person on Tuesday, ask the manager if they report sales to the bestseller lists. Most stores do, but if they don’t report sales, then your purchase won’t get counted.

The poem “If I Must Die” is addressed to his daughter Shaymaa Refaat Alareer, and is a plea to her and all of us to keep hope for a better world alive. “If I must die/you must live/to tell my story/to tell my story/to sell my things/to buy a piece of cloth/and some strings/(make it white with a long tail)/so that a child, somewhere in Gaza/while looking heaven in the eye/awaiting his dad who left in a blaze—and bid no one farewell/not even to his flesh/not even to himself—sees the kite/my kite you made/flying up above/and thinks for a moment an angel is there/bringing back love.”

He then concludes:

If I must die
let it bring hope
let it be a tale

In April, Israel struck and killed Shaymaa, her husband, and their two-month-old son. It is up to us to let Refaat’s life be a tale. We at Drop Site have nothing to do with his book, which is published by OR Books, but we want to help make it a bestseller. It is, on the one hand, a true masterwork, and a rich and poignant read you will return to again and again.

Yet we want you to purchase it for another reason, too: To let it fly to the top of the rankings like a kite. Seeing Refaat’s book flying there will be a small sign to Palestinians facing genocide that the world has not forgotten them – and it will send a message to his assassins that we haven’t forgotten them either. Nothing can bring back Refaat or his family but this is one small dose of justice we can dole out.

At Drop Site, we’ll be buying 535 copies and distributing them to each member of Congress after they’re sworn-in in January.

If you live in the Washington, DC area and can help be part of the hand-out effort, please email contact@dropsitenews.com with the subject line “I will help hand out Refaat’s book.” (The publisher is giving us a bulk discount, and our readers were tremendously generous to us on Giving Tuesday, so thank you for helping make this happen.)

Collectively, we have the capacity to do this. Let it be a tale.

Sign the pledge! Let it be a tale.

If you’ve read this far, thank you thank you thank you. Free Palestine!

Elk for a Free Palestine

/ Tracy Abell / 4 Comments

Popping in quickly to share this image Zippy captured from our deck yesterday.

Elk! While we’ve seen them in the open space several times over the years we’ve lived here, this was our first sighting from our home. A neighbor said she recently saw about 30 in the open space.

I also wanted to share links to articles from The Intercept that I read today, detailing the increasingly oppressive crackdown on those standing up for Palestinian rights.

The Intercept also wrote about the release of Amnesty International’s new 300-page report that adds the human rights organization to a growing chorus of legal scholars and activists describing Israel’s assault on Palestinians as genocide.

The United States is funding and enabling genocide as they increase police forces around the country and build Cop Cities to train police in how best to bash in our heads. We’re all we’ve got, and it’s imperative we hold onto our shared humanity.

From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free! 

Wild gift

/ Tracy Abell / 13 Comments

I’ve been scarce around here, largely due to overwhelm on a global and personal level. Today got off to a good start and then quickly went south with the news that my son was in a (heightened) health crisis. A while later, I was on the phone with my spouse for the umpteenth time, updating him on our son’s condition, when I glanced out the window.

Such a gorgeous fox, possibly the same one who visited my neighbor in June? Either way, I was delighted by the sighting. I quickly grabbed the nearby camera and captured this one image through the deck railing before it jumped on the back fence and went to the other side. Foxes must have incredibly keen senses because this one immediately knew my camera and I were at the closed window.

A brief interaction, but that fox lifted my spirits immensely. For that, I’m grateful.

Take good care, everyone.

Twofer Tuesday: Clear Creek edition

/ Tracy Abell / 4 Comments

As mentioned, I celebrated yesterday’s birthday at Clear Creek. It was a good choice: lots of sunshine plus the peace of moving water. As we walked in search of a sunny place to picnic, we saw a man running behind his dog carrying a frisbee. I was disappointed that I didn’t have my camera ready to snap a pic. Well, a few minutes later, they ran past again and this time I was prepared. Such a happy doggie!

Then we found our spot in the sun.

After selecting flat-ish boulders near the water’s edge to sit on, Zippy and I ate lunch while watching leaves gently sway beneath the water’s surface and bubbles move along on top as they cast star-shaped shadows below. Despite people crossing on the nearby bridge, it felt like we had the creek to ourselves. Too soon, the sun dropped below the canyon cliff, and our sun-filled location was shady and cold. Time to head back home.

Though our outing was brief, it soothed my soul. I highly recommend sunshine and water for late November birthday celebrations.

My birthday wish

/ Tracy Abell / 12 Comments

Today is my birthday and while I’m not celebrating with a solo camping trip as I did two years ago, I am heading out to be near water. Zippy’s packing lunch for us now and then we’re going to Clear Creek to sit in the sun as we watch the moving water.

The Boyd Lake State Park shoreline where I ran on my birthday morning, November 25, 2022.

My birthday wish is for anyone reading this to commit an act of kindness, whether on behalf of a friend or family member, neighbor or stranger, or self. It’s hard days on the planet and a little kindness goes a long way. Shared humanity for the win, yo!

May this day bring you smiles, joy, sunshine, and human connection.

Coming in for a landing

/ Tracy Abell / 8 Comments

I’ve been losing myself in revisions of my middle grade novel–grateful for the distraction from this brutal reality–and am close to being finished.

Sandhill Crane at Monte Vista National Wildlife Refuge. March 12, 2024

While I’m still a day or two away from being done, I believe in celebrating every step along the way. So, today I celebrate myself and this project as I prepare for the final landing. Yay!

Block the $20 billion weapons sale to Israel: urgent action needed

/ Tracy Abell / 11 Comments

I’m back again with a request for calls (or emails, if you’re phone-phobic)  to your Senators demanding* asking they support* co-sponsor tomorrow’s vote on the Joint Resolutions of Disapproval. This morning, over 100 protestors went to Capitol Hill (while a large crowd gathered in support outside) to demand Senators stop the $20 billion weapons sale to Israel. Dozens of protestors–faith leaders, plus climate, housing, Indigenous, Jewish, and Palestinian activists–are being arrested. For what? Demanding an end to the U.S. government using our taxes to fund and facilitate genocide. (As I write this, there are currently 7 Senators either co-sponsoring or on record in support of the Joint Resolutions of Disapproval: Bernie Sanders, Peter Welch, Jeff Merkley, Tim Kaine, Brian Schatz, Elizabeth Warren, Chris Van Hollen.)

Image from US Campaign for Palestinian Rights email

Those courageous people are putting their bodies on the line, so let’s amplify their message and call/email our Senators. (You can also call the Capitol Switchboard operator to be connected with the Senate offices at 202. 224. 3121). NOTE: I’ve summarized talking points farther down this post.

Here’s background info from the Adalah Justice Project:

On Wednesday, the Senate is expected to vote on a historic set of bills to block a $20 billion weapons package to Israel. Sen. Bernie Sanders, along with Sens. Merkley and Welch, introduced joint resolutions of disapproval (JRDs) to stop the $20 billion sale. 

This is the first time in U.S. history that the Senate will vote on blocking weapon sales to Israel. 

Over the last month, the Israeli military has launched “a genocide within a genocide” – a campaign of mass slaughter and ethnic cleansing in northern Gaza. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in northern Gaza are being starved. Essential aid like food and medicine hasn’t entered the north in weeks, and the hospitals are under siege.

According to multiple U.S. laws, the U.S. cannot provide weapons to any country that violates internationally recognized human rights or to any country that “prohibits or otherwise restricts, directly or indirectly, the transport or delivery of United States humanitarian assistance.”

Israel is clearly in violation of these laws.

Not sure what else to say when you contact your Senators to demand ask they support co-sponsor the Joint Resolutions of Disapproval? Here are a few suggestions:

  • A June poll shows the majority of citizens are opposed to sending weapons to Israel (61% of all citizens, including 77% of Democrats and nearly 40% of Republicans)
  • Sending weapons to Israel violates U.S. laws regarding the delivery of humanitarian assistance
  • Rather than the billions for genocide and destruction, we desperately need meaningful action to address the climate crisis which is greatly accelerated by this genocidal siege.

PLEASE take two minutes to contact your Senators (also via Capitol Switchboard 202. 224. 3121) to demand ask they support co-sponsor the Joint Resolutions of Disapproval tomorrow.

Thank you in advance for taking action. I’d love to hear how your calls went so please let me know in the comments. Also? Share this info with family and friends to increase our impact. Solidarity! ✊🏾 FREE PALESTINE!

*After posting, I realized I was deviating from the request I’d received and so changed the wording accordingly. Apologies!

URGENT: H.R. 9495 is back–action needed!

/ Tracy Abell / 12 Comments

Happy Monday to all who celebrate.

Last week we scored a win when H.R. 9495 was beaten back. Here’s a quick refresher on this legislation:

The Stop Terror-Financing and Tax Penalties on American Hostages Act, which would empower the secretary of the Treasury to designate any nonprofit as a “terrorist supporting organization” and revoke its tax-exempt status, is set to go before the Committee on Rules on Monday for a hearing that could tee up the bill for a new floor vote. Note: quote from Noah Hurwitz’s article in The Intercept.

As Rep Lloyd Doggett points out today in this video on the House floor,  this legislation would allow the Trump administration to slap a “terrorist” label on any group it considers an enemy, and strip that organization of its tax-exempt status with NO DUE PROCESS. The immediate targets of this bill are pro-Palestinian orgs but as Doggett points out, it  would also be wielded against groups that harbor refugees, Planned Parenthood, hospitals providing abortions, environmental groups, and private universities that allow anti-Trump demonstrations. I will add that the legislation will most certainly also be weaponized against those fighting the 80 Cop Cities currently being proposed and built around the country. Note: when I wrote Climate Movement Monday: on crushing dissent back in May 2024, there were  “only” 69 Cop Cities. ALL of this is connected (as I wrote here). They are beefing up police forces and weaponizing cops in anticipation of the unrest that will increase under the weight of climate collapse and income inequality. Trump will drop the Democrats’ veneer of civility and unleash holy hell on anyone he deems a threat. H.R. 9495 gives him (and other presidents) incredible power.

The bill was defeated last week because the vote happened under a suspension of rules and required 2/3 to pass. The Republicans are bringing it to another vote on Thursday when it will only require a majority vote. Last week, 52 Democrats voted with the Republicans to give the executive office this authoritarian power to deem enemies “terrorist-supporting.” Here are those 52 Dems:

PLEASE read that list. If your Rep is on it, call them to demand they vote NO this week. If your Rep voted NO last week, call them to thank them and to ask that they vote NO again this week. If you’re not sure whether they voted NO (as a number of them didn’t cast a vote), check here to verify their vote, and then call them to demand a NO vote.

PLEASE also share this info with friends and family so that we can flood the phone lines in opposition to crushing dissent!

Thank you in advance for your engagement on this issue. We’ve got a hard road ahead of us and it’s vital we stand together. Solidarity! ✊🏾

Update on H.R. 9495 + busted concrete

/ Tracy Abell / 8 Comments

Good news, people! Here’s the update on last week’s post Defend Dissent: oppose H.R. 9495: 

Last night, the Republicans tried to ram the legislation through via suspension of the rules (which, if I’m understanding correctly, was related to them not having a quorum) and that required 2/3 of the vote. THEY FAILED! By 9 votes. That’s the good news. The bad news is that 52 Democrats voted YES on enabling the crushing of dissent. Shameful. Here’s the list of those Dems:

If your Rep voted YES, please call/email to shame them for that! Many of these Dems spent the election cycle wringing their hands over impending threats to democracy and then voted for fascism. If your Rep voted NO, please call/email to thank them for that vote! (Go here for full tally of votes.) Right after the vote, I called mine (Brittany Pettersen)–whom I’d emailed plus called three times on this issue in an attempt to get her on the record–and left a message thanking her for doing the right thing. She’s a horrible, AIPAC-devoted representative, but I give credit where it’s due. I was fully prepared for her to vote in favor of the legislation and believe she must’ve heard from many constituents on this.

In case you’re interested in more background on this legislation, here’s Rep Lloyd Doggett on the House floor last night pointing out the cynicism of attaching this harmful legislation to legitimate legislation that would provide tax relief to U.S. citizens who’d been held hostage in other countries. By the way, Doggett led the charge on defeating this bill and we owe him a huge debt.

This is a win, but this legislation will be back and we must rally to defeat it every time they bring it up. Solidarity!

And now for domestic news: we’re finally replacing our driveway and walkways that are the original concrete from when this house was built in 1965.

No lie, we had the ugliest, most pitted driveway in the neighborhood. We didn’t mind, except for the jolt of pain each time the snow shovel got caught in a crack. We’ve lived with it for many years and now will have joyful snow-shoveling experiences! Bonus? I don’t feel too guilty about adding more to the landfill since we got nearly 60 years of use out of the driveway and walkways.

Who knew concrete could bring such happiness?

Snowy palette

/ Tracy Abell / 7 Comments

Hallelujah! The snow has stopped falling. Our muscles are sore from all the shoveling over the past several days, and now I can rest in the beauty of this cotoneaster.

By the time I finished my shoveling shift yesterday I was exhausted, but couldn’t resist getting the camera and tromping around the front yard to take photos. The leaves and berries of the various shrubs were so vibrant against the snow, like a gorgeous collision of seasons. In fact, the burning bush was almost blindingly bright.

And now the melting begins . . .

Defend dissent: Oppose H.R. 9495

/ Tracy Abell / 13 Comments

Many are reeling right now at the prospect of four years of blatant authoritarianism. At the risk of rushing the grief process, I feel it’s imperative we don’t waste any opportunities to advocate for positive policy and opportunities to block negative policy while we can. This post is devoted to the latter, specifically H.R. 9495 — the “Stop Terror-Financing and Tax Penalties on American Hostages Act.”

Please use this letter template to send a quick, personalized message to your Member of Congress asking them to Protect the Right to Dissent and Oppose H.R. 9495. Note: Congress could be voting on H.R. 9495 as early as next week.

What is H.R. 9495? You can read the proposed legislation here. Pay special attention to SEC. 4. Termination of tax-exempt status of terrorist supporting organizations. Basically, if this legislation passes, a President would have the power to label a non-profit organization or activist student group a “terrorist-supporting organization” and then strip it of its non-profit tax status.

What’s the immediate goal? To shut down the student movement for Palestinian human rights by targeting organizations such as Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP).  Right now it’s the student activists, but if it passes, this legislation could be weaponized by any President against any group. “Terrorist” is a handy-dandy label for those who rise up against our government’s policies. I’ve written about the tactics used to silence the courageous students speaking out for Palestinian rights, and hope you will speak out now on the students’ behalf.

The following comes from MPower Action.

The House previously passed a bill (H.R. 6408) that could give any president unprecedented power to target and shut down nonprofits and activist student groups.​ The legislation was intended to strip the tax-exempt status of organizations advocating for Palestinian human rights. The Senate refused to take it up after tens of thousands of our members sent letters to Congress urging opposition.

But now, House Members are attempting to pass a different bill (H.R. 9495) that includes the legislative language of H.R. 6408, which would be disastrous for all of our organizations working towards a lasting ceasefire in Gaza and an end to the occupation.

We can’t let that happen.

Urge your U.S. House Representative: Vote NO on H.R. 9495.

This bill would give future presidents new powers to target and shut down nonprofits and movement groups in the name of security — with virtually no oversight. 

Our communities have seen firsthand the kind of abuses that prosecutors and Presidential administrations can unleash against everyday people of conscience using similar tools. 

We can only imagine the effects that could be unleashed on our nonprofits advocating for Palestinian human rights if a future administration decides to use this expanded power to target us.  

Send a letter to Congress now. 

Thank you for everything you do.

In solidarity,
Yasmine and the team at MPower Action
——————–
It’s Tracy again. The letter template is short and I personalized mine with references to how the Democrats just campaigned on personal freedoms and saving democracy (because my rep is a Dem). Crushing dissent is absolutely anti-democratic.

Thank you for taking action. Solidarity! ✊🏾

We are not alone and we are not powerless

/ Tracy Abell / 6 Comments

My inbox is filled with messages from various organizations and organizers, reaching out to make sure people know they’re not alone and that there’s a path forward. I’ve collected much good stuff here and hope that when you have the energy and focus, you’ll read through it all. Or, maybe do as I am today, read in little spurts.

The piece I’ve seen shared the most online was written two days ago by Daniel Hunter, 10 ways to be prepared and grounded now that Trump has won (title updated today), and is chock-full of wisdom and links, along with roles we all might play in defense of our shared humanity. If nothing else, I hope you check that one out. The subtitle alone contains an important reminder: The key to taking effective action in a Trump world is to avoid perpetuating the autocrat’s goals of fear, isolation, exhaustion and disorientation.

Final harvest of delicata squash that made a surprise appearance in Zippy’s garden. Photo 11.2.24

Jewish Voice for Peace wrote: The world feels impossible, unbearable. There is lots to say about why we are here, and even more to say about how we keep fighting. But in this moment, I want us to remember that we have one another. And with what we are up against, we will need each other more than ever. 

We come from generations of resistance, of defying the impossible cruelty of societies built on domination. The Right fuels itself on our isolation and rose to power on a politics of despair. The antidote, as always, is organizing. Our power lies in our commitment to one another and in our solidarity. We will not allow our communities to be turned against one another or scapegoated. We refuse to be divided.

Organizer Kelly Hayes wrote: We’re going to show up for each other, figure out what we need to learn, skill up, and fight for each other. Because we’re gonna have to. Let’s ground ourselves in our values and our refusal to abandon one another. Remember who you want to be, come what may, and move in the direction of your values. I wrote a book with Mariame Kaba (Let This Radicalize You) about the kind of work that’s ahead of us. It’s there for you if you need it. No matter what happens next, let’s get our learn on and think strategically about the work of collective survival. Isolation incubates fear. Together, we will foster courage and solidarity, and we will fight for each other. I am sending you all so much love right now. Let’s sidestep the kind of squabbling and finger-pointing that will only slow us down and talk about what we need to do and build together. We don’t have time for acrimony. If acknowledging that is a challenge for you, ask yourself what the whole world is worth and engage accordingly.

Kelly’s email included a link to her Movement Memos podcast To Transform Our Trauma, We Must Nurture Movements for Change (transcript included).

Earthjustice wrote Earthjustice is bigger and stronger than we were in January 2017, and we are ready to fight back. We took the threat of Trump’s Project 2025 plan at its word, and we crafted a blueprint of our own. We have over 200 lawyers poised to take Trump to court, and we are already executing our state-based strategy to ensure that he does not block progress in the last years we have left to meet our climate deadlines. Earthjustice won a staggering 85% of the cases we brought against the previous Trump administration. 

Earthjustice is raising money for its Rapid Response Legal Fund and now through December 31, donations will be matched $1 : $1.

I will close with words from Sarah Kendzior, written in 2016:

“Do not accept brutality and cruelty as normal even if it is sanctioned. Protect the vulnerable and encourage the afraid. If you are brave, stand up for others. If you cannot be brave — and it is often hard to be brave — be kind.”

A sunny smile + a cool offer

/ Tracy Abell / 2 Comments

I spotted this sign on my street yesterday and thought it might help soothe some frazzled election nerves.

Confession: that image actually kinda twists my brain as our household used to include a golden retriever we called Packy and then later, a keeshond by the name of Sunny! The sign is like a mashup of our two beloved dogs.

In addition to bringing a smile, I also want to let you know about an opportunity to express your animal love while at the same time helping the people of Gaza. Watercolor painter (and professional cat lady, sociologist (MA, PhD), adjunct lecturer at SUNY), Gyunghee Park, has an amazing offer in support of esims for Gaza:

Donate 10GB to Gaza and I’ll personally send you a 6x6inch portrait of your cat, dog, ferret, hamster, bunny, lizard, etc. for free! Just message me proof of purchase and your address. [Gyunghee can be reached at: Gyunghee.park AT outlook DOT com]

I’ve posted before about esims for Gaza, but here’s the explanation from Connecting Humanity (group of volunteers coordinating gazaesims.com):

Since October 2023
People in Gaza are cut off from the internet by Israeli bombing and blocking. Every photo you see from Gaza since then has come through an eSIM, a virtual SIM card, which connects people to the internet.
eSIMs can save lives and give Gazans a voice to show the genocide in Gaza. Connecting Humanity provide eSIMs to journalists, medical professionals, aid workers, families, people documenting the genocide and children and students who are all using eSIMs to stay connected with the world and each other.
Over 400,000 eSIMs have been donated through Connecting Humanity, without your generosity Gaza would be totally isolated. eSIMs are saving lives and showing the world the genocide.

They are in desperate need of more esims and currently only have the ability to provide them to medical staff, journalists, and students. With your help, they can again provide esims to civilians facing incredible hardship.

How do you do this?

  • Go to gazaesims.com to learn how to purchase and donate esims OR donate money HERE for the purchase and distribution of esims.
  • NOTE: I’ve had the easiest transactions with Nomad. Use discount code NOMADCNG

Just think how wonderful it will be to gaze upon a watercolor rendering of your beloved dog, cat, hamster, turtle, bunny (shh, don’t tell Sunny), or ChiaPet, knowing it was made possible by your generosity and sense of shared humanity. Bonus: The artist Gyunghee Park also accepts commissions at Gyunghee.park AT outlook DOT com so if you like her portrait of your doggie friend, you might also want to get one of your gecko. PLEASE share here if you take Gyunghee up on her offer!

Thank you for reading this far. Keep hydrated and remember to breathe. We’re all in this together. Solidarity!

Happy Halloween

/ Tracy Abell / 8 Comments

With all the scary things happening in the world right now, I welcome this over-the-top display in a neighborhood yard.

Image not great due to glare and the dirty windshield, but you still get the idea. This display makes me smile every time I see it. Also? I can’t help but wonder where these tall beings spend the rest of the year.

Perhaps in a dark and dank dungeon filled with the sounds of rattling chains and anguished moans?

Sunday Confessional: tired of making signs

/ Tracy Abell / 9 Comments

There’s a collection of signage in my home. Signs that family members and I carried at marches against G.W. Bush’s invasion of Iraq. The non-mobile Iraq death toll sign we created on a piece of countertop, the one chained around the honey locust tree in our front yard for years and years following the invasion and occupation. Signs urging my so-called representatives to go big on climate policy. Signs against fracking. Signs in support of a Green New Deal. Lest you think I’m incapable of throwing anything away, I no longer have my sign from the May 1987 march in San Francisco that shouted U.S. OUT OF EL SALVADOR or the signs protesting Bush Sr.’s bombing of Iraq in the early 90s. I do, however, have a bag filled with clean, blank cardboard just waiting to be made into other signs.

Why? After all, none of those things I marched in opposition to were stopped. None of those policies I marched in support of have been enacted. So why do I continue to make signs and take to the streets? Because it helps me feel less alone. Because chanting in unison with others helps release anger and frustration. Because silence feels like complicity.

Today I made another sign for my front yard: ARMS EMBARGO NOW. I’ve been meaning to do so for months and finally summoned the energy today.

The CEASEFIRE sign has been in the yard for over a year now. There are layers of packing tape holding the vinyl letters in place and today I added more to extend the sign’s life since the two major candidates share the same goal to not only continue the onslaught on Gaza, but to extend it to the surrounding region. When I made that sign a year ago, I had no idea this nightmare would continue as long as it has. Silly me. I’m old enough to remember Joe Biden’s four decades of war-mongering. The man has never not chosen violence and destruction. And Kamala Harris, booed yesterday at a rally in Michigan (a swing state) for her unwavering support for genocide, cares more about enabling Israel than winning the election.

We’ll see if the liberals who got mad about missing brunch after Clinton lost in 2016 will return to the streets this time around. No matter what happens on November 5, I know where I’ll be. Holding a handmade sign and shouting my outrage.

Literary institutions to authors: don’t speak of Gaza

/ Tracy Abell / 8 Comments

Earlier this week, I highlighted how anti-Zionists in the Jewish community are being  targeted by Jewish institutions, schools and synagogues, for expressing solidarity with Palestinians. It’s a heartbreaking situation that has fractured communities and led to feelings of pain and isolation for those bravely speaking out on behalf of our shared humanity. Unfortunately, that’s not the only community being torn apart over Zionism.

Writers are also facing the same kinds of pressure from literary institutions. Yesterday, Truthout published the following from author Lisa Ko: “Literary Institutions Are Pressuring Authors to Remain Silent About Gaza.” The article begins with this (emphasis mine):

When writer and disability justice activist Alice Wong received a MacArthur Fellowship earlier this month, she shared a statement about accepting it “amidst the genocide happening in Gaza.” The backlash was swift, with a deluge of posts on X attacking Wong’s character and accusing her of antisemitism.

This conflation of opposition to Israel’s military action with hatred of Jewish people is only one part of a broader wave of political and social repression that is attempting to silence writers speaking out against the war. In the past month alone, authors who have criticized Israel’s ongoing bombardment of Gaza — which is funded largely by the U.S. — have been labeled extremists, been suspended and fired from faculty jobs, and targets of defamation and harassment.

Ko goes on to detail how she received death and rape threats as a result of her expressing concern for the safety of a Muslim woman scheduled to be on an upcoming  Writers Institute festival panel with Ko. However, Writers Institute isn’t the only institution pressuring writers to remain silent in the face of genocide. PEN America holds this mission statement — “PEN America stands at the intersection of literature and human rights to protect free expression in the United States and worldwide” — and yet feels comfortable pressuring authors to keep their mouths shut in order to be eligible for literary prizes.

A culture that demands certain political allegiances from its writers and artists at the risk of losing career opportunities is one that is antithetical to democratic values, and harkens back to the McCarthy-era Hollywood blacklist that barred writers from employment on suspicions of “subversive” and “un-American” leanings. 

I write for young readers and for many, many years belonged to and volunteered for the largest international organization dedicated to children’s writing and illustration: Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI). I cancelled my membership several years ago because of how SCBWI treated a Palestinian woman who questioned SCBWI’s one-sided support for Israel following an attack on Gaza. I’ve never regretted that move, especially since SCBWI, which exists purely on behalf of creators for children, remains silent in the face of a genocide in which children are being shot in the head by snipers. I now belong to Story Sunbirds: a kidlit collective of authors and illustrators who stand up for children with all our hearts. I feel much more comfortable in that community.

Reading Ko’s article made me incredibly sad. Institutions that supposedly exist to uplift voices and create stronger bonds between humans all around the globe are instead using coercion and threats to keep people from speaking out on behalf of fellow humans. Please take a few minutes to read the article: “Literary Institutions Are Pressuring Authors to Remain Silent About Gaza.”

We can’t stop talking about Palestine.

Zionism doesn’t only harm Palestinians

/ Tracy Abell / 17 Comments

Although I am not Jewish, I wanted to share two recent pieces focused on the generational and political fractures forming in the Jewish community (specifically, institutions such as synagogues and schools). It makes me sad on multiple levels to see the damage being done to longstanding communities and those with lifelong commitments to Jewish professional life because of the clash between Zionism and anti-Zionism.

The first article, “U.S. Jewish Institutions Are Purging Their Staffs of Anti-Zionists: A months-long investigation found even the smallest hints of dissent are often met with unemployment” was published by Shane Burley on

On October 18, 2023, protesters with the anti-Zionist organization Jewish Voice for Peace and other progressive Jewish groups staged a sit-in in the Cannon House Office Building at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., to protest the Israeli assault on Gaza.
Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images

Countless Jewish progressives and youth have answered the call for solidarity with Palestine, and the community’s entrenched political, religious, and cultural institutions are determined to punish them for it.

This attitude has long-term consequences for Jewish institutions. Per Shane Burley (emphasis mine): “… this is happening across the Jewish world at the same time that there’s a leadership vacuum, or people are retiring from these jobs and they can’t get them refilled. It’s harder to hire rabbis, less people are becoming rabbis. It’s harder to hire Jewish educators. It’s harder to hire these people. And so at the same time as they’re having trouble reproducing these organizations, they’re kicking out the people that are often the most tied in, the people that are most involved in it.“

Burley goes on to say: I think history is very clear that Jewish life flourishes when Jewish diversity and Jewish freedom of conscience flourishes as well. And also in a cosmopolitan, multicultural society where difference is respected and all communities are protected. Historically, Jewish communities are often safest when partnering with other communities who have been threatened by the far right or by the state or things like that.

So we’re undermining exactly that history with this very isolationist, nationalist narrative. And we’re cutting out the very forces, activists, community organizers, anti-fascists, that have protected us in the past. So we’re breaking that continuity really distinctly.

Near the end, host Marc Steiner says this:
Well, I think that the voices that you allowed us to hear in your article are the voices that need to be heard. [   ]  Because their stories are important for the world to hear. And I really do look forward to more conversations with you, but also with some of the folks that you interviewed in your article that we can do together to bring their voices out because they need to be heard. They’re the ones who were attacked. They’re the ones who are fighting for their beliefs. They’re the ones who are going to be the engine that pushes the revolution of change inside the Jewish world, I think.

I stand on the side of those speaking truth to power. Solidarity with the courageous people risking their livelihoods to speak out against apartheid, settler colonialism, and genocide!

Sunday Confessional: I don’t want either

/ Tracy Abell / 6 Comments

I know I’m not alone in feeling pretty horrified and despondent about the two major presidential candidates, neither of which will use the considerable power of the executive office to address the many crises we face.

Neither candidate cares about Palestinians, but one wants us to believe she does. Except, the longer she goes without stating the obvious–that the U.S. must enact an arms embargo–her concern is revealed to be nothing more than a veneer of compassion.

One candidate is a climate denier. The other says the right words about the climate crisis, yet vows to lead the world’s “most lethal military” (the U.S. military emits more carbon dioxide than entire countries) and fully supports funding and facilitating a nonstop bombing campaign. Sorry, but that seems an awful lot like climate denialism.

Neither candidate is talking about Medicare for All while we face down year five of a global pandemic. Both candidates are trying to out-hate the desperate people showing up at U.S. borders. They both want more cops and more criminalization of people trying to survive in this capitalist hellscape. No matter which one takes office, the brutalization will continue.

To be clear, I loathe that horrible little greed-head. I detest his othering of vulnerable people and his naked desires to further enrich himself and his already-rich fascist friends. But couldn’t we have a candidate who offers more than the fact that she’s not him? Couldn’t we have bold and aggressive policies that will meet people’s material needs (and allow humanity to survive) rather than a Democratic candidate who cares more about peeling off a few Republican votes? (Challenge: name one Republican presidential convention in which Democrats took the stage).

Anyway, those are some of the thoughts bouncing around my head as Zippy and I walk through our neighborhood with its many political signs.

We love this homemade sign aimed directly at the two houses across the street with Tr*mp signs in their yards. 

While I feel visceral disgust for those with Tr*mp signs, I don’t feel a whole lot better about those with Harris signs (except for the above). I get it, the duopoly has put us in a horrible position. But Harris signs bring another kind of despair, forcing an acknowledgment that this country has normalized mass death, disability, and suffering. We’ve never reckoned with the million-plus people who died and the millions of others disabled due to Covid (Biden did so much damage in his four years) and way too many voters are completely happy to overlook the slaughter of Palestinians (fully sponsored by the Democrats). Yet we’re supposed to believe these same voters will “push Harris left” if she’s elected? (They said the same about Biden and I wonder, for example, how many of those who were rightfully outraged by images of children in cages due to Tr*mp’s policies know that Biden also put children in cages and unleashed this at the border?)

The one and only good thing about the Electoral College is that, living in Colorado, I don’t have to agonize about my presidential vote because it doesn’t matter. The state votes blue no matter who, and Harris will win Colorado. Not so in the swing states where there are basic steps Harris could have taken to insure those votes. She chose not to take those steps. I hope people remember that on November 6th.

Genocide there, oppression here

/ Tracy Abell / 8 Comments

Mondays are usually devoted to climate-related content, but today I’m  pivoting to the oppression happening on university campuses here in the U.S. (which, as you know, is frequently touted as the world’s greatest democracy and defender of free speech).

I’ve written before about the oppressive tactics employed against college students around the country who don’t want their tuition and taxes used to fund a genocide of Palestinian people (here, here, and here), and today am linking to a sobering article from Truthout about the ramped-up efforts to crush dissent. ‘s October 13 article, Chalking Bans and ID Checks at Protest Repress Palestine Solidarity on Campus, comes as Israel unleashes horrific violence and destruction on Gaza, the West Bank, and Lebanon. The United States is enabling all this and universities are playing a huge role in keeping the genocide going. But as Jarmakani points out, it’s not only genocide but also scholasticide.

“…Israel is committing scholasticide in Gaza and throughout Palestine. In Gaza alone, more than 625,000 students have no access to education because 85 percent of schools have been directly hit or damaged, all universities have been destroyed and entire pathways of knowledge and wisdom have been annihilated. Given this context, it is particularly egregious that U.S. universities resume classes this fall more determined than ever to silence and repress speech and action in support of Palestine.”

Rather than spending the summer months meeting their students’ demands for transparency and divestment from weapons manufacturers, the universities spent that time encoding repressive policies to crush dissent.

Alongside outright bans on encampments at virtually every university come a coordinated set of campus policies, including mask bans, mandatory ID policies, bans on chalking, new protest guidelines and even curricula and syllabi review, all of which promise to severely undermine academic freedom and free speech. On some campuses, as in the California State University system, these restrictions are enacted through “Time, Place, and Manner” policies, which — while they claim to be “content-neutral” — are clearly a direct response to the student movements that transformed campuses last spring, as they explicitly prohibit “vandalism, property damage, trespass, [and] occupation of a building or facility.”

The California State University system restrictions feel personal to me as I was a student at several of those campuses. Shame on them.

Jarmakani continues:

Even more chilling is the fact that these policies seem to presumptively assume that “unlawful discrimination, harassment, and defamation” are the goal of the prohibited activities, specifying that they are “not protected by the First Amendment,” and setting them up for punitive action, even though the right to protest is a central pillar of the First Amendment. Of course, no university should tolerate discrimination, harassment and defamation on its campus, but amid a new “red scare” driven by contrived charges of antisemitism, in which outside Israel advocacy groups weaponize Title VI to argue that criticism of Israel constitutes discrimination and harassment, we must be clear that the actual purpose of such policies is to penalize pro-Palestine speech.

A writer I admire recently wrote on a private forum that they worry that within a year or two, open discussion of Israel will be censored under law. That doesn’t feel like an exaggeration.

I highly recommend reading the entire article which is filled with links to examples of the many egregious practices aimed at crushing students’ voices. I’ll close with the final two paragraphs (emphasis mine):

Student encampments were examples of principled protest, nonviolent civil disobedience, collective education and political resistance; they intentionally cultivated spaces of popular education, mutual aid and collective care. Through this ethic, their demands for divestment not only invigorate the movement for Palestinian liberation — they make urgent connections among U.S. imperialism through the war on terror, Israel’s genocidal assault on Gaza, and deadly policing practices in the U.S., all through the lens of weapons manufacturers. We must not let them be silenced.

In the face of ongoing genocide in Gaza and devastating attacks on Lebanon, I take solace in the communal forms of knowledge and practice that activate and sustain us. The actual S.O.S. urgently before us does not call for the securitized response of militarization and repression; it demands our urgent commitment to life and collective liberation.

Thank you for reading this far. I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments. Until next time . . . solidarity! ✊🏾

Climate change: we’re the cause but we can also be the solution

/ Tracy Abell / 6 Comments

It’s a Wednesday, but I’m offering what would usually be a Climate Movement Monday post because the synchronicity of the two elements contained here was just too perfect to pass up. Below, I offer information on hurricanes and then a quick action.

As Hurricane Milton bears down on Florida while millions struggle to recover from Helene (mutual aid links here), I received two connected emails. The first, from HEATED which is billed as “a newsletter for people who are pissed off about the climate crisis,” was their latest article titled “How fossil fuels mutated Milton: Climate scientists tell HEATED the historic storm represents “the profound irresponsibility and culpability” of polluters.”

I highly recommend reading the entire piece which begins: For scientists who study the effects of climate change, the scariest thing about Hurricane Milton is not simply its historic strength. It’s the fact that Milton grew so strong so quickly—mutating from a pipsqueak into a monster. 

screen grab from a news broadcast

Milton’s rapid intensification from a tropical storm to a Category 5 hurricane left meteorologists speechless, with one veteran NBC6 Miami scientist tearing up on air. On X, hurricane scientists described Milton’s sudden explosion as “unprecedented,” “terrifying,” and “jaw-dropping,” as the storm’s wind speeds grew from 60 mph to over 180 mph in only 36 hours—one of the fastest intensifications on record.

A similarly rapid hurricane intensification happened just weeks earlier with Hurricane Helene, which transformed from a relatively weak tropical storm into a historic Category 4 hurricane within two days.

The article goes on to quote climate scientist Michael Mann who points the finger at the fossil fuel industry which is responsible for 76 percent of greenhouse gas emissions. “ExxonMobil’s own scientists warned that continued fossil fuel burning would lead to “potentially catastrophic events,” Mann said. That those catastrophes are playing out today represents “the profound irresponsibility and culpability of a fossil fuel industry that knowingly hid evidence of the tremendous danger of their product—not just danger to individuals … but danger to humanity and the planet. A whole higher category of crime.”

The article continues, including an explanation of how warmer sea temperatures contribute to the strength and size of tropical storms. Then the article ends with this quote from hurricane scientist Andra Garner (emphasis mine):

“The bad news here is that we know that human-caused climate change is driving these kinds of extremes to be more deadly,” said Garner. “But the good news is that we are the cause, and so we can also be the solution.”

That bears repeating: We are the cause of climate change which means we can also be the solution.

Right after reading that HEATED article, I returned to my inbox to find an email from Stand.earth. That email opened with: “Exciting news! Late last month, Philadelphia, PA, became the latest city to join the growing chorus of municipal and sub-national governments to officially call for a Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty. Not only is Philadelphia one of the largest cities in North America, it’s also located in Pennsylvania, a state dominated by fracking. It’s proof that our movement is even reaching areas where the fossil fuel industry is most powerful.”

The email then offers a link to send a message to your local city council, asking for them to call for a Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty. What are the principles of such a treaty?

  1. Non-proliferation: Stop building out the problem by ending the expansion of coal, oil and gas production
  2. A fair phase-out: An equitable plan for the wind down of existing fossil fuel production, where nations with the capacity and historical responsibility for emissions transition fastest, providing support to others around the world
  3. Just transition: Fast-track the adoption of renewable energy and economic diversification away from fossil fuels so that no worker, community or country is left behind

Please take a minute to urge your city to join the call for a Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty and start working on the just transition in your community.

It was SO easy to send a message to all my city council members and mayor. I personalized (and shortened) the letter to make my point which I must say felt extra personal since one of those council members lives right down the street from me. We’ve seen horrific climate policy on the federal level and the Democrat’s presidential nominee, Kamala Harris, now contradicts her earlier campaign vow to ban fracking, but local communities offer a greater chance for citizens to make an impact. Please take a moment to reach out to your city council to let them know how you feel about the role of fossil fuels in these catastrophic hurricanes which are destroying lives and property.

Thank you for reading this far! I appreciate you being here. Solidarity! ✊🏾

You are invited

/ Tracy Abell / 2 Comments

I discovered Norwegian artist Tiril Valeur through Mariame Kaba‘s newsletter and wanted to share because (1) I love this anti-genocide sentiment and want everyone to take it to heart and (2) the artist-activist has created additional powerful pieces you can access here. Beautiful art that refuses to keep quiet is needed more than ever as the U.S. enables genocide and regional war.

Free Palestine! Free Sudan! Free Congo! Free all oppressed people! ✊🏽

Updated mutual aid links (Helene)

/ Tracy Abell / 5 Comments

Yesterday I shared links to lists of mutual aid groups that are helping in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. Those lists are a bit unwieldy to navigate so I wanted to update with this great list put together by Appalachian Voices and 7 Directions of Service.

Thank you in advance for any help you can offer!
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