Fundraise like their lives depend on it because they do
Two weeks ago, more than 20,000 people marched for humanity in Tāmaki Makaurau. Last week, we saw clergy escorted from the offices of MPs who refused to speak to them. Nicola Willis called the religious leaders 'intimidating' as they led a hunger strike and sang waiata.
It can feel like there's no way to sway this government. Some of us have attended hundreds of marches, written hundreds of emails to politicians who just don't seem to care. We have boycotted and called for sanctions, and we have held vigils.
It might feel like it doesn't achieve anything - in the face of an uncaring and cruel government you might feel like giving up. But, as I said in January last year, we owe Palestinians our endurance.
We can help to save lives!
We cannot turn away. And we cannot stop. We owe it to their children, our children, and all children.
One child is killed every ten minutes in Gaza.
According to Save the Children, more than 10 children on average have lost one or both of their legs every day in Gaza since October 7, with many amputations performed without any pain relief.
More than 600,000 Palestinians have been slaughtered by Israel, the world's greatest child killer. Israel's own military data indicates a civilian death rate of 83%.
What else can we do?
For more than a year, we have run a mutual aid account sending funds to Palestinians trying to survive the genocide. This is the absolute best way to support Palestinians, as almost all charities cannot get into Gaza to provide aid.
By donating directly to Palestinians through crowdfunding campaigns, we can see firsthand how much they're helped. Our families get in touch to say they've been able to buy flour to make bread, and our water trucks say 'Aotearoa' on them.
Palestinians are the most resourceful people in the world. They've had to be - they've been under siege by violent occupiers since 1948. Well before Israel's genocide, we've watched Palestinian families build their homes, have them torn down by genocidal settlers, then rebuild them overnight. We've watched our families be displaced over and over and over again by Israeli terrorists.
When you love your land, when your land is part of you, when it's been in your blood for generations and you've watched settlers destroy it - burning down the olive groves that are part of your being - you will stay. And for those who cannot bear to stay any longer, despite the ties they have to their precious whenua, it's almost impossible to survive the leaving. If they can even leave this open air concentration camp.
You are carrying your children and any belongings you have left on your back as you're beaten and harassed by Israeli terrorists, face sniper attacks aimed at your children and the elderly, and you face air strikes from the sky. But still, you try to find a safe place, because what else can you do?
In Mawasi, a sprawling tent camp on the sea, we have seen overcrowding the likes of which are unimaginable. One of our mothers fled there only to find there was not a single space for her or her children on the entire stretch of sand.
Many Palestinians who fled Gaza City for the so-called 'humanitarian' zone that Israel is trying to force them into have had to return to the bombing because there is nowhere they can camp.
But worse still is the occupation forces purposely tearing down camps and bombing camps. Many of our families fleeing their camps due to bombing have been told by the occupation forces that they cannot bring their tents. Many have had their tents burnt for the enjoyment and entertainment of the occupying forces.
So, we are doing a tent drive. I really hope you're able to help us support these precious families.
The Aotearoa 4 Gaza Tent Drive
Run by the Aotearoa 4 Palestine Mutual Aid fund.
What is this charity drive for? We need to support 40 families to buy a tent. At the moment, the cost of tents in Gaza is around USD$1000, that is $1674.33 in NZ dollars per family.
It's a lot. I know this is wildly ambitious, but it's so needed, so we have to try. Each family will be sent NZD$1500 to use for their tent.
What do you need? We need as many families, groups, workplaces, clubs, and organisations as possible (ideally around 60) to adopt a family and commit to raising between $500NZD and $1500NZD AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.
What can I do? You can join forces with friends, family, your workplace, a local club, or any other group of people to see if together you can commit to raising $500, $1,000, or $1,500 for a family in Palestine. Start asking now. Got a group chat with your family? Got a Slack account for your workplace? Send the following message:
Hey! There's a fundraising drive called The Aotearoa 4 Gaza Tent Drive. They're assigning groups of New Zealanders a family in Palestine to send funds for a tent. We need to commit to raising NZ$500 to NZ$1500 through our own fundraising efforts. I really believe we can do it. Shall we?
When you have a group together, you can register here: Aotearoa 4 Gaza Tent Drive Sign-up Form
Once registered, we will assign you a family and then once you’ve raised the amount needed, you can donate it into our mutual aid fund. We will then send it to our families. This is an URGENT call. We need to raise these funds ASAP.
I can't adopt a family. Is there another way to support?
Yes! You can donate to the mutual aid fund, care of: Prosean Pictures 06-0574-0906928-00. Just advise how you'd like the funds spent. If you don't mind, just put 'koha'. If you want it to go towards a tent, put 'tent', and we will use it for the tent fund. If you want it to go toward a water tank, put 'water' as the reference.
I also have a template to send to influencers and public figures that you can send onto them - just email me at emily @ emilywrites . co . nz - and I'll send it on to you.
I have no money, can I still support?
Yes! Please share this post to as many groups as you can. Share it on Facebook, Instagram, BlueSky, and Discord - anywhere. And let others know about this kaupapa.
Contact your favourite influencers and public figures and ask them to support the kaupapa by adopting a family. I can send you words if you need them. See above!
What do I get out of it?
Aside from saving lives and giving a family shelter and a semblance of safety, your business or organisation will be publicly thanked (you can also be anonymous) and added to a directory of supporters, so we know where to spend our hard-earned cash! We can also provide you with social media tiles saying 'I bought a tent for our friends in Gaza' to show you're actually doing the mahi of trying to keep people alive during a genocide.
One day, the children of this world will ask us what we did to stop the genocide. You can say you did what you could with what you have.
Fundraise like their lives depend on it because they do.
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Our wonderful supporters who have already signed on to help:
Enchanted Realm
Darien Fisher Tattoo
Sick Sad Lit (Follow Sick Sad Lit on Instagram)
Michelle Langstone
Nadine Hura
Robert Johnson
Liz + Rudie (Follow Liz + Rudie on Facebook)
Aych McArdle
Marianne Elliott
Crochet Bae
Liz Breslin
Stephanie Rodgers
Bronwyn Turei
Rebecca Keil
Kirsty Baker
Brand+Butter
Delahunty/Wallace/Le Pine/Versteegh Families
Lindsay and friends
Jamie Fenton
Michelle Levy
Natasha Lampard
Remember you can sign up here: Aotearoa to Gaza Tent Drive Sign-up Form.
Share my stuff to your social network of choice!
Sharing my work helps me out more than anything (except for a paid subscription.) Just click/tap any of the buttons below and you can share the post to whatever social media site you like.
