West Midlands Palestine Solidarity Campaign

WMPSC is supporting the national day of action and has called for a protest outside the New Street Branch, 130 New St, Birmingham B2 4JU of HSBC in Birmingham City Centre. Protesters will be there from 1 pm to 2:30 pm. HSBC invests in and provides financial services for companies providing military technology and weapons to Israel, which the Israeli military has used to commit war crimes and systematically violate international law. This includes investments of nearly £100 million in the company Caterpillar.

Caterpillar supplies the Israeli military with bulldozers which are weaponised and used to assist in Israel’s ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people, including the demolition of Palestinian homes, schools, villages and civilian infrastructure – in order to make way for the ever-expanding illegal Israeli Jewish-only settlements.

Since 1967 the Israeli military has demolished nearly 50,000 Palestinian houses, and Caterpillar equipment has been involved at many of these demolitions, which amount to war crimes. Currently Caterpillar Bulldozers are being used by the Israeli military to aid in the demolition of 70 Palestinian homes in the Sur Baher village in East Jerusalem. Over 1000 Palestinians are being displaced from their homes, forcing them to live in exile

Caterpillar also provides equipment used to reinforce Israel’s apartheid infrastructure, including Israel’s checkpoints, seperation wall alongside the West Bank as well as the wall in Gaza, and for the construction of illegal settlements and settlement infrastructure on stolen Palestinian land.

Public pressure led HSBC to divest from Elbit Systems, Israel’s largest arms company, but HSBC remains deeply complicit with Israel’s war crimes.

Mobilise and take creative action at your local HSBC branch, join in with local actions, spread the word on social media and call on HSBC to #StopArmingIsrael!

Transport from the Midlands: Please Join us

Walsall – 7.45am, Abu Bakr Mosque, Wednesbury Road
Carrs Lane Church 8-15 am, Carrs Lane Opposite  Moore St Station

Birmingham Central Mosque- 8.30am 180 Belgrave Middleway, Birmingham B12 0XS

Tickets: £15, concessions £10, £20 sponsor a seat

To book children / asylum seekers / refugees / can’t afford £10 please email admin@westmidspsc.org

or visit https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/west-midlands-national-demonstration-for-palestine-tickets-60273733359?ref=eios&aff=eios

6:30 pm – 9:00 pm

Midlands Arts Centre Canon Hill Park

Birmingham B12 9QH

Click on the picture to book your ticket for the event

The event has been organised to remember and celebrate the lives of departed Birmingham activists for Palestinian human rights, Jolyon Jones, Linda Pugh and Ian Murray, all of whom made daily, long term contributions to the activities of the WMPSC, both locally and nationally. The event will also pay homage to the late Jeremy Hardy by showing his acclaimed film “Jeremy Hardy Vs The Israeli Army”.

VENUE: Unite the Union, Heneage Street West,  Birmingham B7 4AX

Pinkwashing is a propaganda strategy used to conceal human rights violation through the facade of support for LGBTQ+ rights, used by apartheid Israel and corporations such as HSBC.

HSBC invest over £800million in and provide syndicated loans worth up to £19billion for, companies arming Israel. One such company is Caterpillar, who supplies the Israeli military, with specifically designed weaponised bulldozers. These bulldozers are used specifically to demolish Palestinian homes, factories, agricultural land and civilian infrastructure, including water pipes and networks on Palestinian territory assigned by the UN. Caterpillar also provides equipment to: reinforce the apartheid walls in Gaza and the Westbank and for the construction of settlements and settlement infrastructure on stolen Palestinian land, in violation of UN Security Council resolution 242.

To obscure their complicity, and protect their branding, HSBC provides sponsorship and funding for LGBT+ pride festivals across the world, and in the UK they are the main sponsors of Birmingham pride. This funding acts to ‘pinkwash’ HSBC’s image, concealing their involvement in human rights abuses.

Palestinian LGBTQ+ group, Aswat, have called for transnational solidarity to campaign against HSBC’s sponsorship of Birmingham pride:

“From queers to queers, we want to call on all UK groups and specifically groups in Birmingham not to accept HSBC’s sponsorship, in the name of transnational solidarity. We, Palestinians, want to send companies and states who pinkwash their crimes a clear message: oppressed groups know too well that no one will be free unless we are all free, and no group’s rights should be used to cover the violation of any other group’s rights.”

2019 is the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots that led to the birth of the modern Pride movement – but the struggle for ‘Absolute Freedom for All’ – the original aim of the Gay Liberation Front (GLF) who founded Pride inspired by the Black Power Movement – is far from over. States, corporations and institutions at the heart of the military-industrial-complex that makes billions of pounds of profit from a weapons industry that continues to murder queers (and others) across the world use Pride as a tokenistic event to try to clean up their reputation – and we ain’t going to stand for it!

Come to this public meeting to learn more, get involved and be part of a movement to campaign for Birmingham pride to drop HSBC as a sponsor and to highlight the pinkwashing nature of Israel and complicit companies such as HSBC.

Speakers:

Dan Glass – from ‘No Pride in War’ and Beautiful Trouble – a book, web toolbox and international network of artist-activist trainers whose mission is to make grassroots movements more creative and more effective.

Sara Khan – Liberation and Access Officer at University of Manchester Students’ Union, member of the NUS LGBT+ committee, active around QTIPOC, LGBT+ rights and decolonising campaigns.

Mastering a unique combination of Arabic percussion rhythms, Middle Eastern melodies and the band’s signature brand of hip hop, DAM has grown to become one of the most influential acts of the Middle East’s urban music scene.

Heralded as “the spokesman of a new generation”, DAM began working together in the late 1990s as the first Palestinian hip hop crew and among the first to rap in Arabic. Struck by the uncanny resemblance of the reality of the streets in Tupac’s video to their own neighbourhood of Lyd, they were inspired to tell their stories through this potent new medium. In 2016 Maisa Daw officially joined DAM with the release of “#Who_You_R”, an incendiary critique of social hypocrisy and norms. For their UK tour, they will be joined by their live band featuring singer, songwriter & pianist Nancy Mkaabal and DJ Bruno Cruz.

Captivating and cunning, the group has been featured in Rolling Stone, Vibe, Q, Reuters, and The New York Times, and has appeared on MTV, CNN, BBC, and Al Jazeera. Recently signing with UK label Cooking Vinyl (Goldie, Groove Armada, Trio Joubran, 47Soul) they are gearing to release their new album “Between Hannah and Mannah” and will be playing at Birmingham’s The Crossing Digbeth , High Street Diretend B5 5SU as part of their highly-anticipated England tour.

Opening for DAM on this tour is none other than DJ Sotusura. The ever-cunning and creative DJ’s canny ability to mix classic Arabic samples with hip hop, as well as his dexterity on the turntables, has allowed him to emerge as one of the most proactive members of the Middle East’s regional hip-hop scene over the past 15 years.

DAM’s 2019 England Tour is supported by Arts Council England.

– The Crossing is wheelchair accessible.
– Show is 18+.

The Big Ride 2018, is raring to go and we’d like you to support us if you can. Cycling from Coventry to London over three days there are plenty of opportunities to get involved, cheering us on along the route, joining in on the final leg, helping to raise funds for the Middle Eastern Children’s Alliance and importantly making others aware of what we are doing and why.

If you would like to support my efforts by making a donation to MECA you can link through my Global Giving page: https://goto.gg/f/27569 Note that donations will also be accepted for a period after the event. Thank you

Now in its fourth year The Big Ride 2018 is our biggest ride yet with over 200 entrants cycling to London over three days. TBR aims to raise awareness of the situation between Israel and Palestine bringing attention to the military occupation of Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem – since 1967.

TBR will again this year be raising money for The Middle Eastern Children’s Alliance (MECA) which specialises in the rehabilitation of children in Gaza who have been traumatised by the occupation.

There are numerous ways you can support and get involved:

We want you to come out and cheer us on over the three days, bring flags and banners, make some noise. There are numerous places you can catch us: when we set off each day, have a break, stop for lunch, or at the end of the days ride (see below) or just come out on the route.

On the final day, you can get your bikes out and join us for a shorter ride into London, you can join TBR at: Verulamium Park, St Albans 25 miles – Stanmore Cricket Club, (lunch stop) 13 miles or The Crown Inn, Cricklewood, 5 miles, regroup at Speakers Corner before the rally at Old Palace Yard. The route will be signed posted by lead riders, just make sure you and your bike are both road worthy! There’s no need to register but you must make your own arrangements to get back home.

If you can’t get to the ride then maybe hold an event, raise a bit of money or make a donation yourself. Over the last 3 years we have raised over £100.000 and this year our target is an ambitious £23,000. Funds raised will be used for the work that MECA is doing in Gaza, please donate through Global Giving Giving For Palestine

Friday 3rd – Birmingham to Coventry

Friday 3rd – Coventry to Northampton 37 miles. 7.30/8.00 a small group will cycle form Swanhurst Park, Birmingham, B13 0TB  to the Start in Coventry

Friday 3rd – Coventry To Northampton

Millennium Place, Coventry, CV1 1JD Registration 10am – Rally and send off 11am – Set off 11.30. Stops: (1) 12.40/12.50 for 20 min Newbold Inn, Newbold, CV23 8UE. (2) Lunch, 2.00pm Barby Park in Barby, CV23 8UE. (3) 3.45/4.00 for 30 min Whilton Marina Café, Whilton NN11 2NH. Finish, All Saints Church, George Row, Northampton, NN1 1DF arrive for 5.00 pm.

Saturday 4th – Northampton To Luton

Saturday 4th – Northampton to Luton 49 miles. Start, All Saints Church (as above) Assemble 8.15 – Set off 9.00 Stops: (1) 10.00/10.15 for 30 min Salcy Forest Café, NN7 2HX. (2) Lunch, 12.00/12.15 for 45 min in front of Milton Keynes train station. (3) 2.15/2.30 for 30 min Morrisons car park, Leighton Buzzard. Finish, Opposite Cycle King, Bury Park, Luton arrive 4.30/5.00 pm.  For further details on the reception and events in Luton https://www.facebook.com/events/178033159486068/

Sunday 5th – Luton To London

Sunday 5th, Luton to London 36 miles. Start Lea Halls, 70 Bute Street, Luton, LU1 2WJ. Assemble 8.15 Set off 9.00. Stops: (1) 10.15/10.30 for 30 min Verulamium Park, St Michaels Street, St Albans AL3 4SW. (2) Lunch, 12.15/12.30 for 45 min Stanmore Cricket Club, HA7 4LB. We will come along the Edgeware Road (1.30 to 2.30) past the Crown Inn, and regroup at the open air café by Speakers Corner, Hyde Park 2.30/2.45 followed by a 20 min ride to Reception and Rally (3.30 till 4.30) Old Palace Yard, Westminster.

TBR – www.thebigride4palestine.com  MECA www.mecaforpeace.org

FREEDOM – JUSTICE – EQUALITY