(To sign on to the letter write to: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it )

(Or sign on to Jewish Voice for Peace's letter supporting the boycott call)

Mothers outside of Leviev-NY 5/10/08

M’azuza Abu Rahmeh, a mother from Bil’in, explains, “I hope that on this important day for mothers that no women in the world will have to live through this type of experience and that instead they will live with their families and homes, in security and peace.” Halima Husain, a mother from Jayyous, adds, “I hope that free people around the world will boycott Israel’s occupation and will not support businesses of wealthy Israelis like Leviev who is building the settlement of Zufim, and that they will stand with us to lift this shadow and darkness that hangs over the Palestinian people.”

With our governments failing to act, the only way to end the suffering of Palestinian mothers and their families is to boycott Israeli companies like Leviev's that profit from the illegal activities of land confiscation and settlement construction. No diamond is worth the destruction of people's lives. This Mother’s Day support mothers like Halima Husain, and M’azuza Abu Rahmeh from Bil’in, along with their children. Boycott Leviev.

As mothers from New York City and from around the world, we stand with Palestinian mothers from villages like Jayyous and Bil’in and call on New Yorkers to boycott Lev Leviev’s Madison Avenue jewelry store every day, but especially on Mother’s Day. Leviev is exploiting this holiday in honor of mothers, the third biggest jewelry shopping period annually in the US, to sell his jewelry, even as his companies ruin the lives of mothers in Palestine.

 (Click here for a high resolution PDF of the Mother's Day card we are distributing in front of Leviev NY)

(Click here for pictures)

Leviev’s companies have built homes for Israelis in the settlements of Zufim on the land of the West Bank village of Jayyous, Mattityahu East on Bil’in’s land, and homes in the Maale Adumim and Har Homa settlements, which are cutting off Palestinian East Jerusalem from the West Bank.

While all Israeli settlements violate international law and destroy hopes for peace, Leviev’s settlements also exact a heavy human toll on mothers and families. Halima Husain, a mother of seven from Jayyous, explains, “The settlement of Zufim was established directly on our land which was planted with olive, almond and fig trees. We registered complaints repeatedly with the Israelis with no results.” Now Israel has built its wall through Jayyous in order to annex 70% of the village’s farmland for Zufim’s expansion. Villagers need Israeli permits to pass through the wall and reach their farmland. Halima continues, “I don’t have a permit and my husband Hosni has been denied a permit for 10 months. One of my children has been held for 14 months in an Israeli prison and I haven’t been able to visit him for three months with the Israeli excuse of ‘security reasons.’ And now my husband’s income is insufficient to cover my son’s university education, the costs of my other son in prison and our household expenses, all because we can’t reach our land.”

Halima’s story is similar to many in Jayyous. The once-prosperous farming village of 3,400 residents is impoverished because families can’t access their land. 70% of Jayyous’ families are now in great need of food aid. 103 out of a total of 195 students in grades 7-12 have dropped out of school because parents can’t cover school expenses. In 2002, before Israel began the wall’s construction, 180 students from Jayyous were in universities. That number has now dropped to 50.

In Bil’in, M’azuza Abu Rahmeh, a mother of five boys and four girls, explains, “Our land was seized for the construction of Mattityahu East settlement. And our olive trees were cut down during the construction of the apartheid wall. These trees hold memories for each of my children that are impossible to forget. This pushed us to confront the bulldozers when they uprooted the trees during the wall’s construction.” M’azuza and her children, including her 23 year-old son Hamza, participated in Bil’in’s three-year nonviolent community campaign against the construction of the Mattityahu East and the apartheid wall which was intended to annex the settlement to Israel. M’azuza says that during the protests, “Hamza was gravely injured in the head when he was hit with a rubber-coated steel bullet, and he spent two weeks in the hospital. One month after he left the hospital the Israeli military came to our house at night and, after sowing fear in me and in my small children and turning our house upside down, they arrested Hamza. I felt as if my heart had been ripped from my body. I am pained when I remember our uprooted olive trees, and Hamza’s injury and arrest.”

During more than 200 demonstrations aiming to prevent the seizure of 50% of Bil’in’s land, the Israeli military has injured around 1,000 civilian protesters, including Israelis and internationals, and arrested 50. Around 300 of those injured and 13 of those jailed were children from Bil’in.

For more information on the campaign to boycott Leviev’s companies see: www.adalahny.org

1. Afifeh Abed, Birzeit, Palestine
2. Sana Abu Rahmeh, Bil’in, Palestine
3. Paula Abrams-Hourani, Vienna, Austria
4. Hiba Abu Salem, Aida refugee camp, Bethlehem, Palestine
5. Micaela Adame, Sevilla, Spain
6. Barbara Agostini, New York, NY, USA
7. Dalal Akil, Beirut, Lebanon
8. Sulafa Al-Bassam, New York, USA
9. Widad Albassam, Chicago, USA
10. May Al-Issa, London, UK
11. Nazhat Al-Issa, London , UK
12. Dalia J.Al-Khadra, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
13. Naomi Allen, Brooklyn, NY, USA
14. Orly Almi, Tel Aviv, Israel
15. Kifah Alqam, Bethlehem, Palestine
16. Fayza Arar, Beit Omar, Hebron, Palestine
17. Violeta Aranda, Sevilla, Spain
18. Salwa Ashira, Bethlehem, Palestine
19. Layali Azar, Brooksville, Florida, USA
20. Arwa Aziz, New York, NY, USA
21. Maie Ayoub Vonkhol, NY, USA
22. Donna Baranski-Walker, Redwood City, CA
23. Julia Barnett Toronto, Canada
24. Najah Barsoum, NY, USA
25. Georgina Bedrossian, NY, USA
26. Greta Berlin. Le-Bar-sur-Loup, France
27. Marcia Bernstein, Brooklyn, NY, USA
28. Didi Beydoun, NY, USA
29. Judy Bjorkman, Owego, NY, USA
30. Monique Blin, Paris, France
31. Elizabeth Block, Toronto, Canada
32. Rima Bordacosh, NY, USA
33. Leila Bordacosh, NY, USA
34. Claude Boucherot, Paris, France
35. Lila Braine, New York NY, USA
36. Joyce Bressler, Nyack, New York, USA
37. Sandra Butler, Oakland, California USA
38. Allison L. Brown, New York, NY, USA
39. Mary P. Buchwald, Brooklyn, NY, USA
40. Elly Bulkin, Montclair, NJ, USA
41. Madeleine Bullock, Canberra, Australia
42. Paola Canarutto, Italy
43. Maya Chami, Beirut, Lebanon
44. Kathleen Christison, Santa Fe, NM, USA
45. Jacinta Clarke, Auckland, New Zealand
46. Ruth Clark, Edinburgh, Scotland
47. Pauline Coffman, Oak Park, IL, USA
48. Elinor Cohen, New York, NY, USA
49. Marisa Consolata Kemper, Cairo, Egypt
50. Celia Cruz, Lansing, Michigan, USA
51. Fatima Daana, Ramallah, Palestine
52. Shadia Obeid Daraghmeh, Tubas, Palestine
53. Ron and Maria De Stefano, New Jersey, USA
54. Afifa Dirani, Beirut, Lebanon
55. Nancy du Plessis, New York, NY, USA
56. Noelle Elia, New Rochelle, NY, USA
57. Rania Elias, Jerusalem, Palestine
58. Hedy Epstein, St. Louis, MO, USA
59. Dalia Fakhouri, Oberlin, Ohio, USA
60. Simone Fattal, Paris, France
61. Lily Farhoud, Menton, France
62. Eileen Fleming, New York, NY, USA
63. Françoise Foliot, Paris, France
64. Elisabeth Franken, Bruxelles, Belgium
65. Genevieve Cora Fraser, Massachusetts USA
66. Carol Gable, Mamaroneck, NY, USA
67. Racheli Gai, Tucson, Arizona, USA
68. Marcey Gayer, New York, USA
69. Carolyn Gelenter, London, UK
70. Emmaia Gelman, Bronx, New York, USA
71. Felice Gelman, Tarrytown, NY, USA
72. Irene Gendzier, Boston, USA
73. Cybele Ghossein, Chicago, USA
74. Mirene Ghossein, New Rochelle, NY, USA
75. Yara Ghossein, NY, USA
76. Begoña Gil, Sevilla, Spain
77. Joan Glickman, New Rochelle, NY, USA
78. Neta Golan, Ramallah, Palestine
79. Susan Goldstein, Toronto, Canada
80. Sherry Gorelick, NY, USA
81. Rosario Granado, Sevilla, Spain
82. Judy Greenspan, Berkeley, CA, USA
83. Suzy Habashi, NY, USA
84. Nimat Hafez Barazangi, Ithaca, NY, USA
85. Eman Hamad, Clifton, NJ, USA (originally from Lifta, Palestine)
86. Lubna Hamad, New York, NY, USA
87. Jawaher Hammad, Auja, Palestine
88. Rusayla Hammad, Auja, Palestine
89. Enas Hammad, CA, USA
90. Touran Hamidi, Westbury New York, USA
91. Yasim Hamidi, Westbury, New York, USA
92. Nancy Harb Almendras, Wiesbaden, Germany
93. Louis de Hautefeuille, Paris, France
94. Janice Hayden, Concord, MA, USA
95. Jacqueline Hazzi, NY, USA
96. Sarah Heaton, London, UK
97. Jenny Heinz, New York, NY, USA
98. Maryse Helal, Cairo, Egypt
99. Jeannette Herzberg, Raanana, Israel
100. Pat Hesslein, New York, NY, USA
101. Majida Hilmi, NY, USA
102. Susanne Hoder – Rhode Isalnd, USA
103. Carol Horwitz, Brooklyn, NY, USA
104. Suzanne Hoyt, NY, USA
105. Houda El-Hourra, NY, USA
106. Katherine-Hughes-Fraitekh, Albequerque, New Mexico, USA
107. Deborah Hyams, London, UK
108. Suhair Issa, Bethlehem, Palestine
109. Nadia Issaoui, Algiers, Algeria
110. Virginia Ivarra, Washington, USA
111. Ghada Jiha, New York, NY, USA
112. Naila Jirmanus, Boston, MA, USA
113. Jacqueline Jraissaty, Beirut, Lebanon
114. Yael Oren Kahn, London, UK
115. Lorraine Katen, Mammaroneck, NY, USA
116. Nazik Kazimi, Newton, MA, USA
117. Nada Khader, Chappaqua, NY, USA
118. Sukain Khalawi, Bethlehem, Palestine
119. May Khalil, Clifton, NJ, USA (originally from Lifta, Palestine)
120. Abla Khoury, Beirut, Lebanon
121. Najla Khoury, Beirut, Lebanon
122. Georgia Kingsley Guida, Brooklyn, NY, USA
123. Odile Lepelletier, New Rochelle, NY, USA
124. Ruth Lessuck, New York, NY, USA
125. Rebekah Levin, Chicago, IL, USA
126. Therese Liebmann, Brussels, Belgium
127. A.Loikow, Washington, DC, USA
128. Denise Love, Grandville, MI, USA
129. Rayan Majed, Beirut, Lebanon
130. Sahr Mandour,Beirut, Lebanon
131. Aleksandra Martinovic, Varazdin, Croatia
132. May Makki, NY, USA
133. Joan Mallory, Mammaroneck, NY, USA
134. Maria Manrique, Sevilla, Spain
135. Miriam Margolyes, London, UK
136. Laurel Marx, NY, USA
137. Susan Masters, NY, USA
138. Wendy May, Australia
139. Kate MacQueen, Los Angeles, CA, USA
140. Eileen Measey, Leamington Spa, England
141. Hilda Meers, Aberdeen, Scotland, UK
142. Jeannine Melly, NY, USA
143. Gail Miller, Woodstock, NY, USA
144. Viola Miller-Ferjentsik, Westchester, NY, USA
145. Luisa Morgantini, Vice President of the European Parliament
146. Dorinda Moreno, Central Coast, CA, USA
147. Susanne Moses, Tel Aviv, Israel
148. Hijar Mousa, Bethlehem, Palestine
149. Suzanne Mousset, Bruxelles, Belgium
150. Elana Nachman, Oakland, CA, USA
151. Dorothy Naor, Herzliah, Israel
152. Denise Nassar, NY, USA
153. Inaam Nassar, Austin, Texas, USA
154. Hiam Nassar, Austin, Texas, USA
155. Joanna Nassar, Beirut,Lebanon
156. Rouba Nassar, Austin, Texas, USA
157. Ibtissam Nassar, Queens, NY, USA
158. Arwa Nasser, Weschester, NY, USA
159. Elena Nasereddin, New York, New York, U.S.A.
160. Diana Neslen, Ilford Essex, United Kingdom
161. Lisa Nessan, Oakland, CA, USA
162. Marlene Newesri, New York, NY, USA
163. Orna Neumann, London, UK
164. Siham Nuseibeh, Kuwait City, Kuwait
165. Josiane Olff-Nathan, Strasbourg, France
166. Fatima Otifat, Ramallah, Palestine
167. Nujood Otifat, Auja, Palestine
168. Tharwa Otifat, Ramallah, Palestine
169. Alejandra del Palacio, Mexico
170. Karin Pally, Santa Monica, CA, USA
171. Odile Pascalides, Paris, France
172. Tamar Pelleg-Sryck, Tel Aviv, Israel
173. Ann F. Perry, VA, USA
174. Ann Petter, New York, NY, USA
175. Alison Phillips, Pitlochry, Scotland
176. Jesse Ponce de Leon, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA
177. Gillian Potter, Cairo Egypt
178. Lysander Puccio, New York, NY, USA
179. Cherryl Qamar, Woodstock, NY, USA
180. Dena Qaddumi, London, UK
181. Gianna Quach, NY, USA
182. Marie-Madeleine Raoult, Montréal, Canada
183. Fahima Rabie, Birzeit, Palestine
184. Yvette Raby, NY, USA
185. Michelle Raccagni, NY, USA
186. Susan Ravitz, Easton, PA, USA
187. Miriam M. Reik, New York, NY, USA
188. Mary Rizzo San Benedetto del Tronto, Italy
189. Joanne Robinson, Yonkers, NY, USA
190. Roberta Robinson, NY, USA
191. Phyllis Rodriguez, White Plains, NY, USA
192. Eleanor Roffman, Cambridge, MA, USA
193. Constancia Dinky Romilly, New York, NY, USA
194. Suzanne Ross, New York, NY, USA
195. Edith Rubinstein, Brussels, Belgium
196. Meredith Ryan, Westchester, NY, USA
197. Renee Sader, Beirut, Lebanon
198. Claude-Marie Safar, Paris, France
199. Mariam Said, NY, USA
200. Nidal Said, NY, USA
201. Liliane Saltiel, New York, USA
202. Sumayyah Samaha, NY, USA
203. Majeda Rafek Nabhan Samhan, Bil’in, Palestine
204. Annmarie Sauer, Antwerp, Belgium
205. Doreen Shapiro, Brooklyn, NY, USA
206. Lee Sharkey, Farmington, Maine, USA
207. Ann Shirazi, New York, NY, USA
208. Karam Shuman, Chicago, USA
209. Nancy Ann Siracusa, New York, NY, USA
210. Sheila Slater, New York, NY, USA
211. Nayla Sleiman, Cal, USA
212. Eustacia Smith, Bronx, NY, USA
213. Kathy Sommers, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA
214. Vicky Steinitz, Cambridge, MA
215. Beth Stephens, Montclair, NJ, USA
216. Sallye Steiner Bowyer, Santa Cruz, California, USA
217. Alexis Stern, New York, NY, USA
218. Meg Swanson, Los Barriles, BCS, Mexico
219. Diana Takieddine, Washington, USA
220. Laila Taqatqa, Beit Fajjar, Palestine
221. Ruth Tenne, London, UK
222. Janet Thebaud Gillmar, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA
223. Leila Tourny, Beirut, Lebanon
224. Zeina Toutounji-Gauvard,Paris, France
225. Nicole Trad, Paris, France
226. Yvette Van Hauwe, Brussels, Belgium
227. Miriam A. Volkmann, Berlin, Germany
228. Carol Weinshenker, New York, NY, USA
229. Naomi Wimborne-Idrissi, London, UK
230. Rev. Gretchen Winkler, Chicago, IL, USA
231. Devra Wiseman, Leatherhead, UK
232. Rachel Wofsy, New York, NY, USA
233. Ann Wright, London, UK
234. Suha Younis, Ara, Occupied 48 Palestine
235. Alia Yunis, Los Angeles, CA, USA
236. Nida Zahran, Bethlehem, Palestine
237. Dorothy Zellner, New York NY, USA