Masks are required and will be available. (Note: other activities will be happening in adjacent spaces where people will be un-masked.)

Facilitators: Miriam Larson & M

Main article: “Palestine is Disabled,” by Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha, DisabilityVisibilityProject.com, Posted Online January 26, 2024

Discussion Agenda:

Arrival and article-reading time
Introductions, discussion agreements 
Small & Large Group Discussion
Break 
Grieving Ceremony

Inspired by the story of Palestinian health care workers who put children's limbs in shoeboxes (see link below), we will make notes to put in a shoebox and light a candle to honor them. If you prefer not to participate in this part of the event, you are welcome to leave at the break. Do what you need to do to take care of yourself!

Grieving Ceremony Reflection 
Closing

Additional media:

Principles of Disability Justice
Read or watch the 10 Principles of Disability Justice by Sins Invalid

More than 1,000 children in Gaza have had ... legs amputated because of Israeli attacks
This image by data journalist and illustrator Mona Chalabi will be part of our discussion.

The Children Who Lost Limbs in Gaza
This article by the New Yorker profiles a family who's 4-year-old lost her leg during an Israeli attack. It also describes a practice by Palestinian healthcare workers of putting children's amputated limbs into shoe boxes. We will create a collective grieving ceremony during the second half of the Media Salon based on this practice.  

Facing genocide while disabled
Al Jazeera's article from November 2024 presents recent information by Palestinian journalist Yousef M Aljamal, including information about disability rates in Gaza before October 2023.

More about Media Salons:

Media Salons are a new monthly discussion space during Community Nights at the IMC. Each month, facilitators will recommend 1-3 stories to read or watch or listen to; you can do that beforehand or come and read together at the beginning of the event. This is a drop-in discussion group and is free and open to the public. The goal is to lift up media from alternative news sources that tell stories of resistance, creative response, and/or social movement history. 

More about Community Nights:

Community Nights at IMC are an existing, weekly informal/drop-in space with free painting happening and a variety of other activities that are easy to drop into. To lead your own activity at Community Night, contact IMC Program Coordinator Ty Lewis at [email protected]