10K Run for Palestine
Donation protected
Hi everyone, I am challenging myself to do the Richmond Run-Fest 10K to help the emergency situation in Palestine.
As you may have heard the International Criminal Courts (ICC) have already deemed that Israel is violating international laws by acquiring occupied territory by force. This is just a surface level statement as the crimes inflicted by the Israeli government and the IDF have been going on for decades.
But why should people in the UK care?
It won’t take you long to find what sort of violence is inflicted onto the Palestinian people living in Gaza and West Bank, but what should be concerning is that the UK supplies arms and weapons to Israel - £576 Million worth since 2008 [link]. These UK companies include those such as BAE Systems and Lockheed Martin.
Also, academics in the UK who hold anti-Zionist views and speak the truth about the injustices happening in Palestine are being unfairly dismissed. For example, David Miller from University of Bristol [link]. Suppression of the truth from our own academic institutions shows how far reaching these views are.
Why do I care?
I have been following this situation since 2017 where I attended my first protest to stop the UK supplying arms to Israel.
Since then, I have realised the complexity of the situation so have realised there is a lot to learn about what happened since 1948, and the multiple ways Palestinian people have been uprooted and denied their existence. Some great event organisers have been: (Scottish) Palestine Solidarity Campaign, WarOnWant and Other Cinemas.
I have been seeing the efforts of charities and organisations helping the aftermath of IDF attacks, helping relocate families, helping set up emergency shelters so I want to support them.
Which Organisation am I supporting?
Palestine Solidarity Campaign
I believe that the fight for justice expands to more than just the emergency aid to those injured from bombings. These issues need change at governmental, legal and educational levels.
Therefore, my donations will be going to the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC). This organisation is a community of people using their voices to “end to the Israeli occupation of Palestine and for peace and justice for everyone living in the region”. In the past 30 years, they have influenced parliamentary decisions to support the recognition of Palestine, decreased the BBC reporting bias on Palestine and stopped big companies like HSBC backing UK arms manufacturers.
What next until the run?
This is a lot of motivation to do well on this run, so I have been training for the 15th already. So far, I am able to do a 5K so I will continue to keep pacing myself, with plans to push this to 7K, 8K, 9K and then to 10K
It will definitely be a challenge, but I hope with your donations to my chosen charities, I will feel a fire behind me!
You are very welcome to donate directly to the charities (links below) or through my page here.
Once the fundraising is over on my side, I will post an announcement to show my donations!!
Also, if you donate and want something funny, I will send you a picture of my very-likely tomato red face post-run lol.
If you can’t donate, that is totally fine, if there is something you can do, it is listening to this Podcast (Palestine Pod), it is a very informative yet stimulating series.
Thank you
Organizer
Alex Luo
Organizer
England