Welcome everyone, to the People’s Conference for Palestine! 

We are gathering at a critical moment, at a time when the struggle for Palestinian national liberation has been revived in the diaspora. For the past several months, we have mobilized consistently in the streets, organized encampments on university campuses to call for divestment, we have confronted zionist institutions and politicians, built coalitions, and so much more. We are convening in this critical moment in Michigan, home to one of the largest Arab diaspora communities in North America and a firm legacy of organized and revolutionary struggle.

We have entered a new phase in our struggle, where we have a responsibility to forge a mass movement. We must do so by: 1) getting organized and joining political organizations; 2) understanding our role in the heart of empire to expose and dismantle the Zionist project, and; 3) strengthening and uplifting a grassroots movement in North America that brings people across all sectors of our society. 

Ultimately, our goal for this conference is to serve as a space to assess, strategize and prepare for what is required for us in the next phase of struggle. 

—People’s Conference for Palestine Steering Committee