Hedy Goes to Gaza http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com Most recent posts at Hedy Goes to Gaza posterous.com Mon, 04 Jul 2011 08:38:32 -0700 Update from Hedy Sunday 3 July 2011 http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/update-from-hedy-sunday-3-july-2011 http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/update-from-hedy-sunday-3-july-2011

Dear All,

I am forwarding to you an overview of what is happening here and I add some additional information regarding yesterday's events.  I suggested in one of our many meetings that a fast or hunger strike might be considered.  Several people started a fast across from the U.S. Embassy.  I offered to be one of those fasting, but in deference to several asking me not to do so, I "complied."  We delivered a letter (see below) but were first told by the security folks at the Embassy that they had orders not to accept the letter.  Shortly thereafter, they were allowed to receive the letter.  We then moved across the street to settle down.  To pass the time, many jokes were told, there was some singing.  Then a couple of us went to the square to join the folks who marched.  It was awesome to see so many of our signs & tee shirts, which we passed out to the group.  In the square I ran into many people I know from other venues, viz. Gaza Freedom March.  The main Greek leader of this mostly young group then offered several choices of what to do next.  By a vast majority vote (democracy in action) it was decided to march to the U.S. Embassy & join the group fasting.  Three or four of us (myself included) quickly returned to the Embassy to welcome the crowd.  After a long wait, we heard their chants, but they were not coming closer, so we walked down the hill to meet up with the crowd, who were stopped by the police.  So, once again & only briefly I was behind the police (like at Rutgers U).   Not for long as police came behind us.  We sang, chanted & the ever so young police "behaved."  Perhaps they were beginning to be "infected" by our peaceful demeanor.  At a point in time the large group left.  The U.S. boat people held an impromptu meeting.  At the end of the meeting, the fasters returned to their site & the rest of us disbursed.  Some returned to the boat for an overnight stay.  The rest of us (me included) returned to our hotel for a good night's sleep.  Since there are not enough sleeping spaces on the boat, we take turns sleeping there (I've done my time sleeping on the boat  twice.)

I/we will return to the boat tomorrow.

Peace & love,

Hedy

 

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Fri, 01 Jul 2011 10:53:00 -0700 Tweets from Hedy On The Audacity of Hope http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/tweets-from-hedy-on-the-audacity-of-hope http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/tweets-from-hedy-on-the-audacity-of-hope

With  great joy we left Parama pier. Under bright blue sky we traveled 33min in calm waters when CoastGuard arrived #flotilla2

I'm below deck surrounded by a doctor and a nurse and wonderful other people. Our spirits are high. I'm calm, unafraid, hopeful.

Our wonderful captain negotiated with them. We were in a holding pattern for probably 3 hours when the commandos arrived with drawn weapons.

 

 

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Fri, 01 Jul 2011 07:10:00 -0700 They're on Their Way http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/theyre-on-their-way http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/theyre-on-their-way

The U.S. Boat is now heading to Gaza…

For Tweets from the passengers on the boat,  go to http://twitter.com/#!/wtquick/freedomflotilla2

Us_boat_leaves
 

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Fri, 01 Jul 2011 05:24:00 -0700 Holocaust Survivor Sails to the Gaza Strip by Carlos Restrepo http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/holocaust-survivor-sails-to-the-gaza-strip-by http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/holocaust-survivor-sails-to-the-gaza-strip-by

http://universitycity.patch.com/articles/holocaust-survivor-sails-to-the-gaza...

 

Hedy Epstein, an 86-year-old Holocaust survivor, is having trouble packing her luggage. First, she packed too many clothes to fit in her suitcase, but then again she doesn't know for how long she will leave. Epstein has traveled several times throughout her life, first from Germany, escaping Adolf Hitler, to England. Then to New York and eventually St. Louis. This time, she is trying to travel light, for a boat trip to the Gaza Strip.

Epstein is one of 34 American passengers aboard the Audacity of Hope, as part of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla II that will be traveling to the Gaza Strip this week in protest of Israel's naval blockade of the Gaza Strip. 

Last year, a similar attempt was made when the Gaza Freedom Flotilla I set sail from the Island of Cyprus to Gaza. Nine people where killed then, when Israeli commandos took over the boats, according to a New York times article. An investigation by several international organizations is still pending.

This, however, will not deter Epstein from going.

"It's very easy and comfortable to sit here and say, 'Isn't that awful, what’s happening there. I wish someone would do something about it'," Epstein said. "It's not good enough. If I feel this way, I have to do something about it."

Epstein has been an activist for a number of human rights and social justice causes throughout her life, recently as an advocate for human rights in the Middle East. Epstein said she has seen many injustices in her lifetime, starting when she fled Nazi Germany.

Surviving The Holocaust

Epstein was born in 1924 in the village of Kippenheim, Germany. In 1933, when she was eight years old, Hitler took power and Epstein’s parents decided they were going to try to leave the country.

"They very quickly realized that staying in Germany under Hitler and being Jewish maybe was not the best combination to raise a family," Epstein said. "They were anxious to leave and became increasingly more desperate to get out anywhere in the world, didn’t matter where."

In 1939, Epstein was one of 10,000 Jewish children from Germany who traveled to England before the beginning of World War II. Epstein's parents could not go with her. They were eventually sent to concentration camps in Europe. While in England, Epstein received regular correspondence from her parents who never told her of their suffering. 

On September 1942, Epstein received one last postcard.

"Traveling to the east ... Sending you a final goodbye," the postcard read.

Her parents had been sent to Auschwitz, and Epstein never again heard from them.

Wake-up call

Epstein came to New York to live with relatives in 1948, the same year Israel declared its independence. Epstein said at the time she had mixed feelings about Israel.

"On one hand I was glad there was a place for survivors of the Holocaust to go to, because they either couldn't or chose not to go back to where they came from," Epstein said. "But on the other hand, I was afraid that somewhere down the road, no good would come of it."

Epstein said for many years she did not give much thought to Israel.

"I was new to the United States, had new things to learn and so Israel and Palestine were on the back burner of my interests and remained there for a long time," Epstein said.

Over the years, Epstein worked in a variety of jobs. She was also an activist for different causes such as fair housing, abortion rights, and antiwar activities. In 1982, Epstein said she got a "wake up call," about Israel when she read about a massacre in two Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon. 

"As I learned more and understood more, I became increasingly disturbed about Israel's policies and practices," Epstein said. "I began to speak out against those policies and practices and speak out publicly."

Her pro-Palestinian activism came with a price.

Persona non grata

With eight synagogues, a couple of schools and other community centers, University City has a strong Jewish community. Epstein said she knows she is not welcome among that community because of her political beliefs. 

"I am not part of the Jewish community around here," Epstein said. "To them, I am persona non grata because of my politics. They say I am a self-hating Jew, an anti-Semitic, a traitor."  

Epstein said in spite of this, she does not feel left out or alone.

"You can't be friends with everybody," Epstein said. "You can't belong to every group."

A dangerous sail

Dianne Lee, a professor at St. Louis Community College - Forest Park, who like Epstein is a member of the St. Louis Instead of War Coalition, worries about her friend's safety.

"It's certainly dangerous," Lee said. "I think the people who are participating in the flotilla are very committed and very brave. I think they are going to be remember some day as being on the right side of this issue."

Epstein said she will not take with her anything that will remotely resemble or could be used as a weapon. In her luggage she'll carry a few nutrition bars, a toothbrush, a first-aid kit and a couple changes of clothes. In the boat, there will be letters of support for the Gaza Strip from people around the world .

"That will be our cargo," Epstein said. "That will be our sole cargo."

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Thu, 30 Jun 2011 15:21:00 -0700 Hedy's Update Thursday 30 June 2011 http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/hedys-update-thursday-30-june-2011 http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/hedys-update-thursday-30-june-2011

Hedy was interviewed today on Democracy Now:

http://www.democracynow.org/2011/6/30/live_update_from_jewish_holocaust_survivor

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Thu, 30 Jun 2011 10:16:35 -0700 Hedy on the Audacity of Hope boat http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/hedy-on-the-audacity-of-hope-boat http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/hedy-on-the-audacity-of-hope-boat

Hedy and other members of the U.S. Boat to Gaza have taken turns sleeping over on the boat. On Thursday they invited the media to come to the boat to conduct their own inspection.

 

Hedy_stay_human

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Mon, 27 Jun 2011 13:32:00 -0700 The Battle of the Story http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/the-battle-of-the-story http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/the-battle-of-the-story

Hedy at a news conference, Monday 27 June, Athens, Greece


 

Hedy_in_athens

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Mon, 27 Jun 2011 11:54:00 -0700 Twitter List http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/twitter-list http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/twitter-list

Hedy has reported this morning that she has little time for computers, as usual, and that there is continued hope that the US Boat to Gaza will be disembarking soon.  I've compiled a Twitter List for following Freedom Flotilla 2, consisting of passengers on the US Boat to Gaza who have Twitter accounts, as well as the main Twitter feeds for the US Boat and other English-tweeting boats in the flotilla.  The list compiles the latest tweets from these flotilla participants in one place.  Here is a link to the list: http://twitter.com/#!/wtquick/freedomflotilla2   If you know of other twitter feeds by actual flotilla participants, please let me know so I can add them to the list.

Of course, there are other valuable sources of information about the flotilla on Twitter.  A couple of my favorites are the European Campaign to End the Siege on Gaza (http://twitter.com/#!/ECESG), and Ali Abunimah (http://twitter.com/#!/avinunu).

Bill

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Sun, 26 Jun 2011 19:39:58 -0700 Hedy mentioned in Sunday's Guardian http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/hedy-mentioned-in-sundays-guardian http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/hedy-mentioned-in-sundays-guardian

Israel accused of trying to intimidate Gaza flotilla journalists

Foreign Press Association urges Israel to withdraw threat of 10-year ban against journalists travelling with flotilla

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jun/26/israel-accused-gaza-flotilla-jour...

 

 

Hedy-epstein-007

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Sun, 26 Jun 2011 03:39:00 -0700 Hedy's Update for Sunday 26 June http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/hedys-update-for-sunday-26-june http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/hedys-update-for-sunday-26-june

Dear All,

For latest information go to witnessgaza.com    On Tuesday at 5 P.M. Pacific time go to 90.1 KPFA Flashpoint.

I/we are still ladies (& gentlemen) in waiting for the acropolis to let us go. Sometime today we will have to move from the Stanley Hotel to another hotel, name unknown at this time.  Despite all this, our spirits are still high & a bit frustrated. 

Some of us are taking turns, spending the night on the boat.   

Hang in there, as we do here.

Hedy

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Fri, 24 Jun 2011 03:51:49 -0700 Hedy at the training in Athens http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/hedy-at-the-training-in-athens http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/hedy-at-the-training-in-athens
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Fri, 24 Jun 2011 03:46:00 -0700 Friday Update http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/friday-update http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/friday-update

Dear All,

The computer was down yesterday evening, therefore no news from here. 

Yesterday was a very hard day in terms of training very realistic.  Have to move to another room with Ann, my roommate, to Gail M.'s room because Hotel needs present room.   Got to do this after I send this.  Situation has some shades of last yr., for all of us.  

After yesterday I felt totally spent and empty, had to get away at end of work  day, another person and I went by subway, which is very functional, cheap and very clean,  to the Acropolis.  We could not get all the way up, because of time of day, last legs were already closed.  Wow!!! What an amazing sight!  How did the workers ever get the material up there with no paved roads ? 

Are you all calling legislators, State Department,  etc.??   You must!!!!  

Got to go for an interview with Spanish media, was interviewed by Swedish media yesterday. CBS will do so just before boarding.

Peace and love,

 Hedy

P.S.  My phone is utterly useless.  If you absolutely have to call me, call hotel & I will be in Room 209.

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Thu, 23 Jun 2011 16:25:00 -0700 The Latest from Hedy on Thursday 23 June http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/the-latest-from-hedy-on-thursday-23-june http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/the-latest-from-hedy-on-thursday-23-june

Good morning All,

After a good night's sleep and before we set out for the rest of activities, I greet you, with longing to be back with you.

I am going to suggest to the group when we gather shortly, that we consider a protest at the U.S. Embassy here after the State Department’s statement I heard about, warning us not to go to Gaza.  Instead, they should support our efforts, those of us Americans, and,  by inference, the rest of the Flotilla II, instead of mouthing/repeating the words and promised violent actions of our "best ally in the region"  of preventing/attacking us in our efforts to reach Gaza, the largest prison in the world.  More about that if my suggestion becomes reality.

Dianne,  I forgot to bring my phone number with me to this computer room.  I'll get it to you soon, insha'Allah.  I am not sure I know how to use my new phone because it is all in Greek. Literally.  

Peace & love,

Hedy

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Wed, 22 Jun 2011 16:00:00 -0700 Hedy's Update from Athens, Wednesday 22 June 2011 http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/hedys-update-from-athens-wednesday-22-june-20 http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/hedys-update-from-athens-wednesday-22-june-20

Dear All,

Sorry for the delay it's been a busy day.  Morning spent on getting a Sim card, unsuccessful, won't work in my phone.  Purchased a phone, don't know yet how to use it & had no time to learn.  Training session & a trip to the magnificent boat & orientation there.  Upper deck has cover with the name of the boat proudly displayed.  Benches for seating.  Downstairs, living room & elaborate kitchen during day, & double-decker sleeping arrangement for 32 during night.  And  air conditioned.

Departure delayed by 2 days & will be from Crete.  Get to Crete by ferry, about 9 hours.away & first opportunity to get sea sick.

Everyone is very solicitous of me, holding hands or linking arms when we walk, frequently asking me if I am  ok, etc.  So, you can all relax, I am almost taken care of better than when I am back home.  No insult intended.

There are some truly amazing people in our group & I haven't even had a chance to sit & talk with everyone in depth.

I delivered the message to Alice Walker that her poetry helped   (sorry, can't remember your name, but you will know who I mean) you through some difficult times in your life.  She was sooooooo glad to learn that.  

Tomorrow will be another busy day, so I may not get back to you until in the evening.  Sorry I don't have my new phone's number with me.  If I leave here, someone else will waiting in line will get on the computer.  I'll try & have it tomorrow.

Please DO NOT WORRY ABOUT ME, I'M IN GOOD HANDS, DOING WHAT IS RIGHT.

Peace & love,

Hedy

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Mon, 20 Jun 2011 20:53:00 -0700 Hedy at Lambert-Saint Louis International Airport Heading to Athens http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/hedy-at-lambert-international-airport-heading http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/hedy-at-lambert-international-airport-heading

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Fri, 17 Jun 2011 04:35:38 -0700 Hedy Epstein: "Stay Human" http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/hedy-epstein-stay-human http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/hedy-epstein-stay-human

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Thu, 16 Jun 2011 05:07:00 -0700 Statement of Purpose by Hedy Epstein http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/statement-of-purpose-by-hedy-epstein http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/statement-of-purpose-by-hedy-epstein

It has been 63 years since Israel has controlled the Palestinian people. It has been 44 years since the occupation of the West Bank, Gaza and Jerusalem.  It has been 4 years since the hermetic closure of Gaza.   It is one year since Israel attacked Flotilla 1 in international waters, on its way to Gaza.

In a few short weeks - near the end of June 2011, Flotilla 2 will be on its way to Gaza - 10 or more ships from many countries, including the U.S. Boat to Gaza, with approximately 1,000 passengers from all over the world, will sail to Gaza from ports in the Mediterranean.

I will be on the U.S. Boat to Gaza - named the Audacity of Hope - together with about 50 other U.S. citizens.  This will be my fifth attempt to reach Gaza, all others having failed for a variety of reasons.  Why is it so important for me to get to Gaza and stand with the long suffering Gazan people?  Because I …...cannot stand idly by...... (Leviticus 19:3).

Israel has controlled and humiliated the Palestinian people for 63 years.  Since then more than 750,000 Palestinians were expelled from their homes or fled out of fear following the creation of Israel in 1948.  That control intensified in 1967, when Israel occupied the West Bank, East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip.  Although Israel withdrew its settlers from Gaza in 2005, it has continued to control the inhabitants’ lives since 2007.  It has prevented most human traffic in and out of the densely populated Gaza Strip, has restricted imports and banning virtually all exports.  The impact:  More than 75% of Palestinians in Gaza live under the poverty line.

“There is nothing in international law that supports Israel’s four-year blockade of Gaza, or  its attack on humanitarian shipments in international or Palestinian waters.“  In fact, as stated by the normally neutral International Committee of the Red Cross, “Israel’s collective punishment of the residents of Gaza is itself a clear violation of international humanitarian law, including the Fourth Geneva Convention.”

In his book, Palestine Peace not Apartheid, former President Jimmy Carter wrote,”Israel’s continued control and colonization of Palestinian land have been the primary obstacles to a comprehensive peace agreement in the Holy Land.  In order to perpetuate the occupation, Israeli forces have deprived their unwilling subjects of basic human rights.  No objective person could personally observe existing conditions.....and dispute these statements.”

Having been to the Israeli occupied West Bank five times since 2003, I agree with Jimmy Carter.  Seeing is believing. 

The vicious discrimination brought to bear against Palestinians in the occupied territories, including Gaza, deserves no applause, as was given by members of Congress in response to Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to both houses earlier this week.  When world governments,   including our own U.S. government, do not act, civilians, civil society, has to step in, and that exactly is what Flotilla 2 is all about.  I believe our mission will succeed because it is an act of faith in the validity of a righteous moral act. 

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Wed, 15 Jun 2011 20:58:00 -0700 Subversives: From the Freedom Riders to the Gaza Flotilla by Mark Chmiel http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/57985483 http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/57985483

 "Don't give up, don't give in, don't give out."

--John Lewis, one of the 1961 Freedom Riders

My friend Hedy Epstein joined the "Move over AIPAC" protests in Washington in late May. While she was there, she paid a visit to the office of her Missouri senator, Claire McCaskill. The 86-year-old Holocaust survivor informed an aide of her upcoming participation in the second Gaza Freedom Flotilla to break through Israel's vicious siege against the people of Gaza.

The aide to Senator McCaskill told Hedy that the Senator "wants you to be safe." Yet, if the Senator was like her colleagues, when Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke before Congress in May, she gave him 29 standing ovations.

The U.S. government proudly upholds its relationship with Israel. As the U.S. believes itself to be above the law, Israel, as a loyal U.S. ally, enjoys a comparable privilege to consider itself beyond the reach of the law, whether that of the seas or of the Fourth Geneva Convention.

Netanyahu is clear about Israel's intention to maintain the blockade on Gaza and so to keep 1.5 million human beings in desperation. He has been quite explicit that Israel is well prepared to deal with the 15 or more boats and thousand people from 40 countries soon to head toward Gaza.

The women and men who will board the U.S. Boat to Gaza object to the cruel imprisonment and impoverishment of the Palestinians in Gaza. In fact, they are willing to embody that objection and risk their well-being on this mission.

They know full well the lethal means Israel employs consistently and with utter impunity against Palestinians. They also know that global citizens concerned about human rights can be treated similarly, as evidenced by the nine people murdered last year by Israel's commandos who took over the Turkish boat, the Mavi Marmara.

By her words, actions, and ovations, Senator McCaskill has long demonstrated on whose side she stands. Ms. Epstein is likewise forthright and clear: She is standing with a growing number of those struggling for a decent life for the Palestinians, who have been dispossessed and demonized by Israel for over sixty years.

Fifty years ago, the Freedom Riders sought to hasten the end of segregation and, by doing so, they faced harassment, beatings, bombing, and defamation. As far as the white supremacists were concerned, the Freedom Riders were subversives.

In 1961 how many American senators expressed solidarity with such "subversive" citizens?

Likewise, those who are willing to defy Israel's brutal policies and to defend the dignity of the Palestinian people are regarded by Israel and its supporters as subversive.

In 2011 how many American senators can utter one sentence of support for the people soon to board the U.S. boat, known as the "Audacity of Hope"?

Mark Chmiel is a member of the Saint Louis Palestine Solidarity Committee and author of Elie Wiesel and the Politics of Moral Leadership (Temple University Press, 2001).

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Wed, 15 Jun 2011 04:55:00 -0700 St. Louis Activist Hedy Epstein Tries to Sail to Gaza—For a Fifth Time http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/st-louis-activist-hedy-epstein-tries-to-sail-4554 http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/st-louis-activist-hedy-epstein-tries-to-sail-4554

This article was written by Jeannette Cooperman and published in Saint Louis Magazine in April 2011.

In late May, the second International Freedom Flotilla will try, again, to reach Gaza. Twenty boats from different countries, with 1,000 people dispersed among them, will set sail. St. Louisan Hedy Epstein, a German-born Jew who fled from the Nazis on a children’s transport back in 1939, will be on the U.S. boat.

Epstein, 86, has made multiple trips to the West Bank and tried four times already to go to Gaza. As her friend Vittorio Arrigoni once joked to her, “If you can’t get in any other way, we’ll have to catapult you.”

Arrigoni made it to Gaza in 2008, when two rickety wooden boats managed the first and only landing. He’s been there ever since, working as a human-rights activist.

Until last week, when he was kidnapped.

“He was a great big guy,” Epstein says, “36 years old, and like the Pied Piper with all the kids following him. His sign-off, whenever he wrote you or said goodbye, was ‘Stay human.’”

Arrigoni was strangled last Thursday afternoon, according to the autopsy report—24 hours before the deadline his captors had given.

“The media is saying that one of the radical groups in Gaza, not affiliated with Hamas, was responsible,” Epstein says. “There was a video: You see him blindfolded, with some kind of wound on his face, and you see an arm and hand grabbing hold of his hair, and there is a flag with writing on it. These radical people never write on the flag. I don’t think that’s who took him.

“Two weeks earlier, another wonderful man, Juliano Mer-Khamis, was killed,” she continues. “He was sitting in his car and was shot several times by a masked person. His mother is Israeli and Jewish; his father a Christian Palestinian. Years ago, Juliano’s mother started the Jenin Freedom Theater in the West Bank, so children could act out their fears and their feelings.” Mer-Khamis, who’d taken over as director, was shot on the street in front of the theater.

“I think these two deaths so close together were meant to scare anyone who is going on the flotilla,” Epstein says. “But they won’t. They will only make us more determined.”

In August 2008, Epstein tried to sail from Cyprus but it was 120 degrees, and she fainted with heat stroke. “The doctor who treated me there was a bit of an exaggerator,” she says dryly.

Before the next trip, in June 2009, she was attacked on Waterman Ave. in broad daylight the day before she was to leave for Qatar. She was caught from behind and thrown to the ground, slashing her chin open and nicking an artery, and injuring her knee.

Her third attempt was with a group that tried to walk to Gaza from Egypt in December 2009. The Egyptian government blocked their passage.

Last May, Epstein was ready to board the first International Freedom Flotilla, but the only access was by climbing a rope ladder, and she was physically unable.

That was the boat boarded by Israeli soldiers, armed naval commandos who dropped by rope from helicopters because Israel saw the flotilla as an attempt to thwart a legal blockade, and a deliberate and dangerous provocation. The flotilla was carrying 10,000 tons of humanitarian aid. Nine passengers were killed and 50 injured; one is brain-dead.

Israel has created a special commission to determine how to deal with this next flotilla. Word has spread that the Israeli Defense Forces are training attack dogs to attack people on the boats.

“I have never been scared until I heard about these attack dogs,” Epstein says. “Even if the Israeli commandos attack us, there is still the possibility of reaching their humanity. But what do you reach in a dog? So that scares me. But not to the point where I won’t go.”

The U.S. boat, originally named The Audacity of Hope, has been renamed Stay Human in Arrigoni’s honor. Epstein has received an $800 grant from the local Conscience & Military Tax Campaign office. She says, "It will help buy life preservers!"

“We will take medicine, and toys for the kids,” she continues. “And we are taking personal letters to the people of Gaza—that will be very dangerous cargo. But the real reason for going is to break the siege. For more than 40 years, no boats have been able to go to Gaza or leave from Gaza. About one and a half million people are living there—”

She corrects herself: “I shouldn’t even say ‘living.’ Existing there. It’s the largest open-air prison in the world.”

http://www.stlmag.com/Blogs/SLM-Daily/April-2011/St-Louis-Activist-Hedy-Epstein-Tries-mdasha-Fifth-Time-mdashto-Sail-to-Gaza/

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Sun, 12 Jun 2011 05:16:00 -0700 Hedy Speaking at Brown University http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/hedy-speaking-at-brown-university http://hedygoestogaza.posterous.com/hedy-speaking-at-brown-university

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