Los Alamos Reporter

Response To LTE: ‘Free Palestine Summer Series Not As Benign As It Sounds’

BY KELLY MYERS AND
EMMA ABATA
Los Alamos

Thank you for providing a platform to discuss our upcoming Free Palestine Summer Series. We appreciate the opportunity to address concerns regarding our event’s intentions and impact. As coordinators, we take feedback seriously and value dialogue — but we respectfully disagree with the suggestion that this series promotes divisiveness, hate, or harm.

Our intent is precisely the opposite: to foster understanding, empathy, and action through education. For 77 years, the Palestinian people have endured brutal military occupation and ongoing ethnic cleansing, apartheid, and genocide by the State of Israel with the full support and participation of western governments. This is not a political “narrative” but a documented reality that needs acknowledgment, and is recognized by human rights organizations, governments, and international bodies.

Free Palestine is a movement advocating for the safety, humanity, and self determination of ALL people. A “Free Palestine” is a vision of Muslims, Jews, Christians and all people in historic Palestine living in right relationship with each other and the land from the river to the sea. We firmly believe that the safety and humanity of Arab, Muslim, and Jewish communities are interconnected and not at odds with each other or at the expense of the other.

True freedom requires recognizing and addressing injustices wherever they occur. We stand side by side with thousands of our Jewish siblings globally who join us in condemning the current genocide in Palestine and advocating for justice and human rights for all. This movement is about affirming the principles of “never again” for everyone, regardless of background.

We trust that the people of Los Alamos understand that our Jewish friends and neighbors are not responsible for the Palestinian Holocaust; suggesting that supporting Palestinian liberation is inherently anti-Semitic is dangerous and incorrect. Criticizing colonization and the policies of governments is not the same as attacking a people. We reject the conflation of Judaism, a religion, with Zionism, a white supremacist political ideology: this distinction is crucial as Holocaust survivor Stephen Kapos explains in this brief video: https://youtu.be/AxLtxX7kPcU?si=dqAvJnsGujYOV-sE

Our series aims to present perspectives often marginalized in mainstream discourse, allowing attendees to engage with the full spectrum of historical and current realities. We believe an informed public is essential to meaningful dialogue and justice. We invite you to attend with an open mind and open heart.

For those interested, our scheduled events include:

  • Tuesday 7/22 at 7PM at SALA – Where The Olive Trees Weep (Film)
  • Wednesday 7/23 at 6PM at UU – Free Palestine Art Making
  • Tuesday 8/5 at 7PM at SALA – Israelism (Film)
  • Tuesday 8/19 at 7PM at SALA – The Encampments (Film)
  • Tuesday 9/9 at 7PM at SALA – Dr. Steve Feldman (Speaker)
  • Wednesday 9/10 at 7PM at SALA – Dr. Yousef Aljamal (Speaker)
  • Thursday 9/11 at 7PM at SALA – Lee Gordon (Speaker)

All events are free and open to the public. We look forward to seeing you there!