US singer/songwriter David Rovics, Brisbane-based musician Phil Monsour and Aboriginal artist Tjupurru took 120 people in the packed Ahimsa House on a journey to Palestine, telling the story of a people forced from their homeland.
Rovics and Monsour sang of people loaded onto the back of trucks to be taken to Gaza and the West Bank; of tens of thousands of Palestinians forced to flee to Jordan and Lebanon, and scattered to the ends of the Earth; and of the simple desire to go home.
Anas Abdulla from the local Palestinian community spoke passionately about his personal experience when he returned to Palestine. As he tried to help an old lady at a military checkpoint he was confronted by an Israeli soldier with a strong New York accent who shouted at him and spat on his Australian passport.
Kathryn De Richleau spoke on the work of Brisbane solidarity group Justice for Palestine. Green Left Weekly's Alison Dellit explained how the newspaper's committed coverage of Palestine, and its new Arabic supplement, had enraged the establishment media.
The night was a huge success with delicious Middle Eastern food adding to the amazing entertainment. The event raised $1300 to be shared between GLW and Justice for Palestine.