October 23-25, 2009
Friday, Saturday and Sunday

Hosted by:
Pitt Students for Justice in Palestine
In participation with:
US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation,
Hampshire Students for Justice in Palestine,
and Pittsburgh Palestine Solidarity Committee

REGISTRATION IS FREE. CLICK HERE

For more info, visit Students for Justice in Palestine HERE
Or email SJP at: sjp.pitt@gmail.com

What is BDS???

Boycott, divestment and sanctions are nonviolent tools that were successfully employed to bring justice to South Africans. Now a global movement of students, labor unions, and churches is using these same tools to bring equality to Palestinians and Israelis.

Almost daily, we hear about another successful campaign where a company or group has decided to divest from Israel. Recently, Britain’s unions committed to a mass boycott movement of Israeli goods, the Brazilian Parliament Called for the freeze of the Israel – Mercosur Free Trade Agreement, and the French company, Veolia, pulled out of the light rail project that would connect illegal Israeli settlements to Jerusalem.

Join us in strengthening the BDS movement in the region by attending this very important conference!

DIVEST FROM ISRAELI APARTHEID!

Agenda
for BDS Conference, University of Pittsburgh
October 23-25, 2009

Friday October 23rd

7 PM- 9 PM Opening Cultural Night
with Remi Kanazi — Palestinian-American poet and writer based in New York City. He is the editor of the recently released collection of poetry, spoken word, hip hop, and art, “Poets For Palestine.”

David Lawrence Hall Room 120

Saturday October 24

10:00 AM – 5:00 PM
BDS Skill-Building Workshops
(all workshops and plenary sessions will be in the University of Pittsburgh’s Cathedral of Learning, please register for further details)

10:00-10:30 AM – Welcome & Introductory Plenary (Cathedral of Learning 204)

10:45 AM -12:00 PM – Workshop A
The International Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Movement / Connecting with Palestinian Activists (Cathedral 204)
or
How to Research Corporations Involved in Israeli Occupation and Apartheid (Cathedral 206)

12:00-1:00 PM – Lunch Break, lunch will be provided to conference participants (Cathedral 236 and 237)

1:15-2:30 PM – Workshop B
How to Research Your University’s Investments (Cathedral 204)
or
Creative Arts in Activism (Cathedral 206)

2:45-4:00 PM – Workshop C
Media 101 (Cathedral 236)
or
Academic and Cultural Boycotts (Cathedral 237)

4:15-4:45 PM – Debrief & Announcements in Plenary (Cathedral 204)

Sunday October 25th
10 AM – 3 PM:  Campaign Planning and Action Steps (David Lawrence Hall 207)

10:00 AM -12:00 PM – Workshop report backs and ongoing workshops (David Lawrence 207)

12:00-1:00 PM – Lunch on your own

1:00-3:00 PM – Strategic planning session, come together to plan campaigns using skills from workshops (David Lawrence 209)

3:00-3:30 PM– Evaluation and closing (David Lawrence 209)

3:00-7:00 PM – Dinner on your own

7:00 – 9:00 PM
Theatrical production of My Name is Rachel Corrie
(Location TBA, likely to be in David Lawrence 120 or Grad School of Public Health G23)

On Saturday, July 18 and 8pm, “Pittsburgh Presents Palestine: A Night of Poetry, Plays & Performances” will open to the public. This is a limited, one-night engagement at Pittsburgh Playwright’s Theatre in the Cultural District of Downtown Pittsburgh.

The evening will consist of poetry readings of Palestinian poet, Mahmoud Darwish, a premier performance of “Palindrome” by Pittsburgh playwright, Jonas Moffat, an encore performance of Caryl Churchill’s “Seven Jewish Children: A Play for Gaza,” and an eyewitness photo show set to live music by local musician and artist, Alberto Almarza, and more!

This evening of collected art forms serves as a benefit to help send local activists to Palestine to work with human rights groups. A reception will follow compliments of Allegro Hearth Bakery.

Pittsburgh Playwright’s Theatre is located at 540 Penn Ave Pittsburgh, PA 15222 in the Cultural District on Saturday, July 18th at 8pm. Tickets are $10 and seating is limited. Nobody will be turned away for lack of funds.