Cindy Corrie: What Mondoweiss Means To Me

Here is the latest message in our series, “What Mondoweiss Means To Me.” We are honored that leaders in the movement for justice in Israel/Palestine respect the site enough to offer these statements in order to help us raise $60,000 by December 31. Please read Cindy Corrie’s comments, and if you agree that quality news and analysis are essential, join her in giving. And please be sure to check out the messages from Steven Salaita, Rebecca Vilkomerson, Omar Barghouti, Scott Roth and Phil Weiss as well!

Each one of you has your own reasons for visiting Mondoweiss, a unique news operation that serves an amazing community of activists and thinkers. Please donate today, and tell us what Mondoweiss means to you.

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My fellow Mondoweiss supporters—

As someone who depends on Mondoweiss to remain up-to-date and to understand all that is happening in Israel/Palestine, I want to share with you how the site extends, reinforces, and documents the human rights work of my family, and that of so many others.

Almost twelve years ago, my daughter Rachel Corrie went to the Gaza community of Rafah. Her purpose was to observe what was happening there, to connect Gaza families with their counterparts in the U.S., and to participate in nonviolent direct action to challenge the injustice suffered by Palestinians. Only seven weeks later, Rachel was killed by the Israeli military, crushed to death under a U.S. built and funded Caterpillar D9R bulldozer as she blocked their path to demolish a Rafah family’s home.  My daughter’s life was ended that day, but her work continues – propelled forward by thousands of others, including Mondoweiss.

Rachel made a difference, awakening her family and many others while she lived.  But she would be humbled, as I am, to know that since her death, she has continued to inform and impact so many more, and in ways that are not simply symbolic. During her time in Gaza, Rachel wrote extensively, documenting the experience of life under occupation. Since her death, her writing has been shared worldwide—first through individuals passing on her messages to friends and family, and then through a play and a book collecting her words.

Rachel’s writing includes detailed observation, and expresses her deepest thoughts about the injustices her friends in Gaza were suffering at the time. She cared deeply about the integrity of her words and recognized that telling what she saw was an immense responsibility. She understood that it makes a difference every time readers far away can learn in vivid, accurate detail what the days and nights are like for those living under occupation.

Mondoweiss was founded after Rachel’s death. I am heartened by the fervent, unceasing dedication of its creators to the same responsibility Rachel felt. As she put it, “Many people want their voices to be heard, and I think we need to use some of our privilege as internationals to get those voices heard directly in the U.S.”

Mondoweiss is committed to clearly and accurately revealing the devastating conditions experienced every day by Palestinians. I hope it is not presumptuous to say that the site’s work feels a part of Rachel’s legacy.  She saw that from much of the mainstream media, if reporting occurred at all about Gaza and the West Bank, stories were frequently superficial, incomplete, and factually incorrect.

Today, at Mondoweiss, we are able to read in-depth reports and to follow reader discussion that provides context and information that much of the mainstream press is unable or unwilling to provide. Mondoweiss reporting brings us facts on the ground in Gaza and insights into university politics and State Department press briefings in the U.S.—key information usually underreported or otherwise available only from sources that many readers would be hard-pressed to track down. Mondoweiss makes it easy for you and me to more deeply follow issues surrounding Israel/Palestine.

What I learn at Mondoweiss strengthens my own activism and keeps me connected to the work that so many others are doing.  The site is a place for people around the world to share how they are challenging the injustice. We read about billboards going up in Santa Fe, the Harvard Dining Services’ decision to stop buying SodaStream, and Linda Wafi’s run in the New York City Marathon to benefit Palestine Children’s Relief Fund. Mondoweiss has been invaluable in keeping me and our entire activist community updated and invigorated.

I’m particularly grateful to Mondoweiss for reporting on our family’s efforts in Israeli courts to establish the Israeli military’s culpability in Rachel’s death. This coverage has not only made us feel supported but has informed many thousands of people about the role of the Israeli judiciary in whitewashing and justifying actions intolerable to any conception of human rights.

Mondoweiss’s editorial and investigative work lets readers around the world know what is happening in Israel/Palestine. The site’s continuing efforts are a critical part of the movement for change—for real, lasting justice in the Middle East.

Please join me today in giving to Mondoweiss. We must act together to ensure the continuation of news that sheds light on all who suffer from the violence and brutality visited upon Palestinians, and on all who struggle against it. Support for Mondoweiss is a practical way to work for human rights.

Yours for peace with justice,

Cindy Corrie

P.S. One more point Rachel made echoes in my mind: “The international media and our government are not going to tell us that we are effective, important, justified in our work…. We have to do that for each other, and one way we can do that is by continuing our work, visibly.” I value greatly the role of Mondoweiss in making our work visible. If you do too, please donate today.