Nakba Day

On May 15, 1948, over 700,000 Palestinians were displaced in the Nakba – Arabic for “catastrophe.” This May 15, we’re remembering the 76 years of the ongoing ethnic cleansing and genocide, demanding all of us to #Escalate4Gaza.

In the same year as the first Nakba, the U.N. released a Universal Declaration of Human Rights, declaring that all people have the right of return to their homelands [1, 2]. But for Palestinians, the right to return home continues to be denied by Israel and its colonial supporters, as the attacks on Rafah and occupied territories escalate, with more and more people getting displaced daily [3]. 

As people that have experienced imperialism, war, genocide, and displacement from the U.S. war machine, we see our struggles as Asian Americans connected with Palestinians. This tragic Nakba day falls during Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month – a commemoration of the legacy of anti-imperialist organizing and historic struggles that have united us under a political identity. 

This APAHM, we’re joining the Nakba Days of Action led by the U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights to stop arming Israel [4].

Here are 5 ways you can take action for Nakba Day:

1. Set up your iPhone to automatically send universities and colleges emails to divest every day
2. Tell Biden to stop sending weapons
3. Tell Citibank CEO to cut ties with genocide
4. Tell Google to drop Israel
5. Fund the evacuations of Gazan families

The Right of Return is a long term struggle that ensures Palestinian people will outlast the apartheid government of Israel and the oppressive laws imposed on them. Many Palestinians fled the Nakba with only a house key, believing they would return within the week. Today, they hold onto the key and pass it down to their descendents as a reminder to resist. Generation after generation. 

Asian Americans have a responsibility to take action for a free Palestine. We cannot stop Asian hate and fight for freedom without including our Muslim and Palestinian communities, because our struggles are interconnected. 

Sources: 

[1] https://www.amnesty.org/en/what-we-do/universal-declaration-of-human-rights/ 

[2] https://www.un.org/en/about-us/universal-declaration-of-human-rights#:~:text=Drafted%20by%20representatives%20with%20different,all%20peoples%20and%20all%20nations 

[3] https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/press-release/2019/05/israels-refusal-to-grant-palestinian-refugees-right-to-return-has-fuelled-seven-decades-of-suffering/ 

[4] https://www.uscpraction.org/actiondays