Burin is a community near Nablus that is surrounded on all sides by violent settler outposts. Living in this reality has meant years of settler-state harassment, land expropriation, and general disruption of livelihood.
ACT IN SOLIDARITY!
The village has held a kite festival almost every year since 2008. In the face of the unprecedented violence of the past year, the community is coming together again to host a festival of culture and resistance in celebration of Palestinian livelihood.
The residents of Burin are inviting people around the world to fly kites along with them on Friday, July 19th and host solidarity events in their own communities as part of a global action demanding the end of military rule.
In the words of the residents organizing the event, “Every year, some residents and activists of the village organize the Kite Festival, where the whole community comes together to build and fly kites in the skies of Burin. The festival represents an act of resistance and a sign of the daily struggle of the residents in the face of the harsh reality of the occupation. Not surprisingly, the festival is seen by the occupation forces as a threat, like all those activities that create community and unity for the Palestinian people. The message of the festival is very simple:
We have the right to smile, we have the right to have fun. We have the right to be happy, we have the right to play, we have the right to move. From the Burin mountains to the sands of Gaza they will not kill our hope and our smiles."
Register to host a local solidarity action with Burin.
*All those who register will be sent a resource packet with additional instructions, information, and visuals for your local action. Event organizers will also be invited to join a briefing with Ghassan Najjar, the director of the Burin Land and Farming Cooperative, in advance of the Kite Festival. If you want to learn more about Burin here is an additional resource list.
From UUJME “People are encouraged to join the global solidarity event with kites bearing one or more of these messages/symbols”:
“Burin is not alone”
“Unoccupied skies”
“Free Palestine”
Palestinian Flag
Poppies
Olive trees/branches