refaat alareer

Death and war. War and death.

/ Tracy Abell / 5 Comments

Every day, my inbox is populated with emails about Gaza. Those messages come from people and organizations that refuse to cede ground to apartheid Israel. Today’s emails include updates from fundraisers for Palestinian families and UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees) whose subject line read: 800 killed in Gaza just trying to get food. Yes, starving people assassinated by Israel and its chief sponsor, the United States taxpayer, for the crime of needing food for their families.

Heartbroken and enraged, I turned to If I Must Die: Poetry and Prose by Refaat Alareer. Refaat was murdered by Israel on December 6, 2023, and his work published posthumously with support from the global community.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The following excerpt is from “In Gaza, We Have Grown Accustomed to War” (October 19, 2023):

Death and war. War and death. These are two persona non grata, yet we can’t force them to leave. To let us be.

Palestinian poet Tamim Barghouti summarizes the relationship between death and the Palestinians that war brings (my translation):

It was not wise of you, Death, to draw near.

It was not wise to besiege us all these years.

It was not wise to dwell this close,

So close we’ve memorized your visage

Your eating habits

Your time of rest

Your mood swings

Your heart’s desires

Even your frailties.

O, death, beware!

Don’t rest that you tallied us.

We are many.

And we are still here

[Seventy] years after the invasion

Our torches are still alight

Two centuries

After Jesus went to his third grade in our land

We have known you, Death, too well.

O, Death, our intent is clear:

We will beat you,

Even if they slay us, one and all.

Death, fear us,

For here we are, unafraid.

Here’s a link to buy If I Must Die (paperback is also available for pre-order).
Here’s a link to donate to UNRWAUSA.org (and yes, they’re still operating in Gaza). This from their email: Our 12,000 UNRWA colleagues in Gaza are still distributing food, water, and medical care, as best they can, every day, under unimaginable circumstances.

Even after more than 320 of our UNRWA colleagues have been killed. Even after dozens of UNRWA shelters have been hit. Even after borders are blocked and bombs continue to drop.

Thank you for reading. Thank you for caring.
From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.

Ceasefire has arrived

/ Tracy Abell / 2 Comments

There is a ceasefire! It’s the very same deal that was on the table in May but that Biden allowed Netanyahu to torpedo as the U.S. continued to send billions of dollars of weaponry and political cover to Israel.

Jeremy Scahill of Drop Site News is on YouTube now discussing the situation with two Palestinian guests. I’m going to add to this post but want to share the Live link now.

Today, just minutes after receiving If I Must Die: Poetry and Prose by Refaat Alareer in the mail, I learned that a ceasefire was reached.

It’s horrific it took this long. It’s horrific that Refaat Alareer (and members of his family) were murdered by Israel before this day came, along with the thousands and thousands of other Palestinians (the majority of them children). It’s horrific that it took Trump’s upcoming inauguration to rein in Netanyahu.

Jeremy Scahill’s Drop Site News piece from yesterday, “The Trump Factor: Gaza Ceasefire Deal Appears Close” outlines how Biden refused to use his power to stop Israel’s genocide of the Palestinian people.

The fact that Trump emerged as the decisive player in pushing a potential ceasefire forward is evidence that Biden never used the full powers available to a sitting U.S. president to seal the deal in the summer. While Trump has publicly repeated his threat that he will “unleash hell” on Hamas if the Israeli hostages are not freed, his pressure has not been solely focused on Hamas; Trump and his aides have made clear to Netanyahu that the president-elect expects Israel to comply with his demands, too.

In case you’re unable to join the Live discussion, here’s a video link to a discussion of the ceasefire deal from this morning.

I also want to link to Ryan Grim’s piece: Kamala Harris Paid the Price for Not Breaking With Biden on Gaza, New Poll Shows (subtitle: Twenty-nine percent of non-voters who supported Biden in 2020 said U.S. support for the genocide was the top reason they sat the 2024 election, according to a survey by YouGov).

I’ve been listening to the Live discussion as I write this (so my concentration is fractured in both directions), but one of the Palestinian guests talked about a “Trump gift bag to Netanyahu” which includes allowing Israel to unleash more violence against Palestinians after a momentary ceasefire. Unfortunately, that wouldn’t be a shock. I’m trying to think about the upcoming release of thousands of Palestinians who have been in detention for years and years, held without charge, as they are starved, beaten, and raped. Their release alone is worth massive celebration.

I’ll stop here.

Rest in power, Refaat Alareer.
Free Palestine!
From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.

Edited to add additional info via an email from US Campaign for Palestinian rights:

Did you see the news? An official ceasefire deal has been reached, and the first of the three-phase plan is due to go into effect on Sunday, Jan. 19. 

We want to be very clear: this is good news. We’ve advocated for a permanent ceasefire as the bare minimum demand from the very beginning. This news is an urgently needed relief for Palestinian people in Gaza fighting to survive each day of this horrific genocide, as we see live scenes of their joyful celebrations. 

At the same time, you may have noticed that midway through last year, we shifted our focus from a permanent ceasefire to our long-held North Star goal to end military funding to Israel from the U.S. war machine. 

This was very intentional. We know the genocide doesn’t end when the bombs stop dropping. The genocide ends when UNRWA can operate freely. When every destroyed hospital is rebuilt. When unfettered aid, food, water, and gasoline can enter Gaza. 

Even then, true Palestinian liberation—essential for the collective liberation of all oppressed peoples globally—only comes when Israel’s apartheid regime, supported by tens of billions in military funding from the U.S., comes to an end. 

I wish those changes were possible in the next few months and that I could share a roadmap with you for it, but that would be a lie.

So today, we keep fighting against another $8 billion in weapons to Israel.

And tomorrow—through power building, organizing, and investing in our infrastructure, we will continue the long-term work to force a U.S. arms embargo on Israel and end U.S. complicity in Israel’s apartheid regime once and for all.

UPDATE on Let’s make “If I Must Die” a Bestseller

/ Tracy Abell / 7 Comments

On December 6, I posted Let’s Turn Refaat Alareer’s “If I Must Die” into a Bestseller, amplifying the campaign from Ryan Grim at Drop Site News, and I’m thrilled with the traffic my post received along with many clicks on the Bookshop.org link to purchase the book. That original post also includes the following important info:

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. 

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

Today’s update comes again from Ryan Grim at Drop Site News. Here’s what he wrote:

Refaat Alareer’s “If I Must Die” is officially a national bestseller

It didn’t happen the way we expected: The book has not yet made the New York Times bestseller list, but the other list the industry tracks is USA Today’s “Booklist.” And there, it settled in at #20 in its first week out.

The amount of attention a book gets during its launch has much to do with where it lands in our cultural landscape, which is the best part about all the energy around it the past few weeks. My hope is that Refaat’s book will be taught and read for years to come and is treated like the political and literary masterpiece it truly is.

The goal of hitting the Times list is still achievable, meanwhile, for two reasons. The Times list is opaque, but a publishing industry source told me that my initial understanding – that the paper counts orders as sales even if the book is out of stock – is probably not correct, and it’s more likely they count orders when they ship.

The book sold more than 20,000 copies but only 7,500 had been printed. That means that when the new printing arrives in January, at least 12,500 will be shipped, and in a typical January week, that number of sales is more than enough to make the bestseller list. So if you haven’t ordered one yet but still want to, your order will still count toward that effort.

I’ve heard from some people who’ve gotten notes from Amazon or other booksellers saying that the estimated ship date for the book is as late as March. That’s not true. The publisher has a very big print run going in January, so you’ll get your copy much sooner. If all of those books ship the same week, it should still make the NYT bestseller list. A huge thank you to everyone who bought a book, and I hope you’re glad that you did.

If you ordered a copy of Refaat Alareer’s beautiful book, thank you thank you thank you for putting it on the USA Today’s Booklist!!! And if you haven’t yet ordered a book for yourself, a friend, or requested your library system purchase copies, please do so (if you can) as it will still affect the New York Times bestseller ranking! PLEASE ORDER FROM BOOKSHOP.ORG TO AVOID BEING SCAMMED

It’s incredibly significant that a Palestinian who was targeted and murdered for using his voice on behalf of his people is still reaching the world with his voice that will never be silenced. This is what is meant by “don’t stop talking about Palestine.” Those in power are doing all they can to erase Palestinians from this world, but the people are standing with the oppressed and uplifting Refaat Alareer’s voice.

FREE PALESTINE!

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!

Refaat Alareer: rest in power and peace

/ Tracy Abell / 7 Comments

Today I learned that Dr. Refaat Alareer, along with his brother, sister, and her four children, were targeted and murdered in an Israeli airstrike. Refaat was a translator, academic, and writer who also reported on life in Gaza. These last two months I got to “know” him on Twitter/X as he shared specific details of the violence and horrors inflicted upon Gazans. Despite the death and destruction, he was funny and hopeful. He struck me as a human being comfortable in his own skin.

At the end of October, I posted a glimpse into LIGHT IN GAZA, an anthology of Palestinian writers and artists sharing their lived experiences under military occupation. But it wasn’t until today that I made the connection that the Refaat from social media was the same man with an essay in LIGHT IN GAZA. Refaat wrote “Gaza Asks: When Shall This Pass?” (Note: You may download the anthology for free from Haymarket Books). I highly recommend reading the entire piece yourself in order to better understand the gift that Refaat was to this world.

In “Gaza Asks,” he shared memories of the random violence he experienced over the years, along with that of friends and family members, and how in each instance they comforted themselves with “It shall pass.” When Refaat was older, teaching world literature and creative writing at the Islamic University in Gaza (IUG), he told stories to his three children to distract them from the twenty-three-day onslaught by Israel’s military (Operation Cast Lead). He told stories as bombs and missiles exploded in the background. Refaat wrote “As a Palestinian, I have been brought up on stories and storytelling. It’s both selfish and treacherous to keep a story to yourself–stories are meant to be told and retold. If I kept a story to myself, I would be betraying my legacy, my mother, my grandmother, and my homeland.”  He went on to say “Telling stories was my way of resisting. It was all I could do. And it was then I decided that if I lived, I would dedicate much of my life to telling the stories of Palestine, empowering Palestinian narratives, and nurturing younger voices.” 

When that particular onslaught ended, Refaat returned to the classroom where he told his students “Writing is a testimony, a memory that outlives any human experience, and an obligation to communicate with ourselves and the world. We lived for a reason, to tell the tales of loss, of survival, and of hope.” He began assigning and training his students to write short stories based on their realities. Those stories were collected and edited by Refaat and published as GAZA WRITES BACK.

But that wasn’t all Refaat did in the classroom. As so succinctly expressed by his friend Dan Cohen, Refaat “used English-language literature and poetry to teach his students the difference between Judaism and Zionism, equipping them with the mental tools to resist Zionist propaganda that seeks to conflate the two.” You can read more about those classroom experiences in “Gaza Asks.”

Later in the essay, in regards to Israel later destroying the administration building at IUG, Refaat wrote “. . . to me, IUG’s only danger to the Israeli occupation and its apartheid regime is that it is the most important place in Gaza to develop students’ minds as indestructible weapons. Knowledge is Israel’s worst enemy. Awareness is Israel’s most hated and feared foe. That’s why Israel bombs a university: it wants to kill openness and determination to refuse living under injustice and racism.”

I’ll stop there because I can’t do justice to the eloquence of Refaat’s essay, and I hope you’ll forgive me for already revealing so much. It’s just that this entire essay touched my heart and I felt compelled to share.

I do want to highlight this poem that follows his essay in LIGHT IN GAZA. Refaat also posted the poem on his Instagram account one week ago:

I’ll end with this poem he’d pinned at the top of his Twitter/X account on November 1: “If I must die, let it be a tale.”

Rest in power and peace, Dr. Refaat Alareer.