November 1989, Page 43

Arab-American Activism

By Catherine M. Willford

ADC Mounts Second Poster Campaign

Posters supporting the struggle for Palestinian independence with a two-state solution for peace and justice in the Middle East were scheduled to go on display in the Washington, DC subway system Oct. 16. The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) paid for a one-month display of the poster ads throughout the Metro system. It was the second time ADC has contracted for poster advertising, and again it set off a debate within the Metro system's board of directors. The United Jewish Appeal Federation of Greater Washington called the posters misleading and inflammatory. The two Maryland representatives on the Metro board called for a ban on political advertising. Their motion was defeated and The Washington Post called upon them to "back off," pointing out that Metro's legal counsel believes changes in policy for advertising, which brings in needed revenues to the hard-pressed system, could present legal difficulties affecting all advertising.

One poster, printed in the colors of the Palestinian flag, reads "Americans fought for Freedom and Independence in 1776. Palestinians are fighting for the same rights today." The other poster, displaying both the Palestinian and Israeli flags, reads "Two Peoples-Two States." Both posters, which encourage Metro riders to support Palestinian independence by calling or writing their congressman, list the congressional switchboard phone number on Capitol Hill.

ADC ran its first Metro poster campaign in 1988 with a poster, headlined "Your tax dollars at work," over photos of human rights abuses in the West Bank and Gaza.

AAI Focuses On Electoral Empowerment

The Arab American Leadership Council (ALC) is a new organization which proposes to chart and implement the political empowerment of the Arab-American community. Created by the Arab American Institute (AAI), the 155-member national leadership assembly held its inaugural meeting on Sept. 30 in Crystal City, VA.

ALC membership is open to Arab Americans elected or appointed to political party posts, as well as those who hold official state or federal positions.

According to AAI Executive Director Jim Zogby, "The ALC will provide a great environment for networking-that all important word in politics-as federal officials meet with those on the local level, and candidates new to politics meet and learn from those already in office."

Another AAI project to raise the stature of the Arab-American community in electoral politics is the National Registry of Arab American Voters and Volunteers. In 10 target states in which the majority of the Arab-American community lives, the registry will identify voter status, district, party affiliation and campaign activity. AAI hopes to log 25,000 names by the end of 1989.

NAAA Proposes Congressional Resolution on Lebanon

The National Association of Arab Americans (NAAA) has proposed a Sense of Congress Resolution (H. Con. Res. 200) endorsing the plan of the Tripartite Higher Arab Committee of the Arab League to resolve the Lebanese crisis. Representatives Nick Jo Rahall (D-WV), Mary Rose Oakar (D-OH), Dale Kildee (D-MI) amd John Conyers (D-MI) are the announced sponsors. The resolution supports the Tripartite Committee's call for an immediate and enforced cease-fire throughout Lebanon, an embargo on the delivery of weapons to all Lebanese factions, an end to the blockade of all ports, the beginning of national reconciliation and political reform and support for the proposed National Reconciliation Charter.

An NAAA letter to President Bush at the time of the withdrawal of the US Embassy staff from Beirut urged that the administration live up to its expressed intention to help Lebanon in its time of trouble.

Palestinian-Americans Protest Killing of Palestinian-American Youth

Protests and picket lines were scheduled for New York City, Chicago, Washington DC and Miami to protest the killing of 14-year-old US citizen Amjad Jibreen Tawil, found dead in the West Bank town of El Bireh on Aug. 19 after being held by the Israeli Defense Forces. Organized by Palestinian American Youth (PAY) and the El-Bireh Society, the demonstrations were endorsed by the General Union of Palestinian Students, the Union of Palestinian Women's Association in North America and the Association of Palestinians for Return. The participants announced a petition campaign calling on the State Department to conduct a thorough investigation of Tawil's death.

Catherine M. Willford, the circulation director for the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs,is a free-lance journalist.