Palestinian women in Gaza prepare maftoul for MECA food parcels
Food is one of the most basic human needs because it sustains our bodies. Food also connects us to our culture, our families, our communities, and our history.
That’s why it is so important to Palestinians and that’s why I’m writing to you today.
I am pleased to support the Middle East Children’s Alliance and its dozens of projects that meet children’s physical needs, while connecting them to their past and helping them see possibilities for their future.
Um Hassan, a farmer and grandmother got all of the junk food out of the school in her West Bank village and recruited a group of women to make healthy traditional foods every day because “Palestinian children need to be strong because we are living under occupation.”
When MECA staff in Gaza visited a kindergarten where many children were not getting enough food, they launched a project that now employs women in the community to prepare snacks and lunches for more than 1,000 young children every day.
Since pandemic lockdowns, Israeli bombing, and the long siege of Gaza deepened poverty and increased the need for food dramatically, MECA delivered parcels, made up of grains, produce, and chicken from local farmers, women’s businesses, and cooperatives to thousands of families in need.
Growing, making, and sharing food are acts of resistance for Palestinians. They strengthen our defense of the land, bring people together, and pass on our cooking traditions to the next generation.
In solidarity,
Reem Assil
Chef, Restauranteur, Author
P.S. MECA has offered to send my new book Arabiyya if you make a donation of $250 or more. And gifts of ANY amount received by December 31 will be matched by a group of generous MECA supporters. Please give as generously as you can. Shukran! (Thank you).
