Who
We Are QUIT! Kit (do-it-yourself organizing stuff)
As queers, we are part
of an international movement for human rights that encompasses
the movement for Palestinian liberation, and all other
liberation movements. We are also part of the growing
international movement seeking active ways to express
our solidarity with the people of Palestine. More.
Alerts Annoucement
Archive
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Join
the Queer Contingent
National Day of
Protest
Free Palestine - No More U.S.-Israeli Crimes of
Occupation
September 28, San Francisco
For info on the
contingent contact us at quitpalestine@yahoo.com
This demonstration
is organized by the Bay Area Justice In Palestine
Coalition http://www.adcsf.org/Palestine/
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Queer Settlers Land on Berkeley
Starbucks
About
25 queer settlers descended on a downtown Berkeley Starbucks
on Saturday, August 17, claiming Berkeley as “a city
without people for people without a city.” The
group, organized by Queers Undermining Israeli Terrorism
(QUIT!), posted a banner proclaiming the reclaimed café
“Queerkeley – A Prophecy Fulfilled.” They also erected
homes (transformed “Palestinian civilian homes reclaimed
from another street theatre action), lawn furniture,
and signs reading, “It Works In Palestine, Why Not Here?”
and “It’s Ours Because We Say So.” They erected
plastic palm trees to “make the concrete bloom,” and
gave patrons a tract explaining their religious claim
to the land as follows:
“Land
of fruits and nuts …
“And
the Lord saw that the queer people were harried in this
land. And the Lord spake onto the prophet Harvey, “You
will lead your people across the wide waters unto a
new land.” Harvey was fearful, and he cried to
the Lord, “How will we cross the wide waters? For they
are cold, and they are filled with all manner of hazardous
substances and raw sewage and other pollutants.” And
the Lord responded, “fear not, Harvey, for a great bridge
will be built, and the people will cross into this land.
And this land will be called Berkeley. I say, Lo, I
have promised the land of Berkeley to the lesbians and
to the gays, and to the bisexuals, and to the transgenders
and to the intersexed, and to all of the gender variant
peoples. And this land shall be blessed with fruits
and nuts, unto 50 genderations.” —
Book of Reclamations and Realty, 4.0
The
group selected Starbucks for the location of their first
settlement in Berkeley because Starbucks founder and
CEO, Howard Shultz, is a major supporter of the Israeli
state and the corporation has become the prime target
of an international boycott of corporations with ties
to Israel (www.inminds.co.uk/boycott-israel.html).
“Since Mr. Shultz clearly believes it is okay for one
group of people to grab land belonging to another and
say they have a right to it, we figure he won’t mind
if we take some of his,” a QUIT leaflet explains.
Workers
in the café were surprisingly unruffled as the Queer
Defense Forces entered the café and announced over a
loudspeaker that the land had been confiscated by the
Queer National Fund and curfew for straights would begin
in five minutes. Several “patrons” were forcibly
ejected from the café by means of SuperSoakers (which
were especially popular with a three-year-old settler).
Many
coffee drinkers quickly cleared out, but one group of
chess players steadfastly ignored the group, who vow
to set up more settlements in the coming months.
Download
"QueerNation Berkeley -- God's Prophecy Fulfilled"
pdf
text-only
version
More
photos from the action available at
http://sf.indymedia.org/news/2002/08/141433.php
