A Child's View From Gaza Exhibit Opening - MOCHA Can't Stop It

“A Child’s View From Gaza,” is an art exhibit by Palestinian children ages 6-14 that reflects their realities and their dreams for the future. Join us in the courtyard outside of MOCHA as we hold an opening celebration of the exhibit. In addition to the art, the opening includes:

Poetry by Deema Shehabi and Lorene Zouzounis
Edible art by The Great Tortilla Conspiracy
Special art activities for children

If you can volunteer, please contact sophia [at] mecaforpeace.org -- we need folks to help us hold the artwork.

And due to the last minute cancellation of this exhibit, MECA is working on securing another location so communities will have an ongoing opportunity to see this censored artwork. Stay tuned for details!


*Since this is a celebration of the art and the children in Gaza who created this work, we want to keep the focus there; we kindly ask you NOT to bring your own signs to this event. Thanks!


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On September 8th, 2011, An Art Exhibit of Children's Drawings Was Banned By The Children's Museum in Oakland ( MOCHA). Much of this artwork was drawn by children participating in MECA's "Let the Children Play And Heal" Project. “Let the Children Play and Heal” gives tens of thousands of children and youth in Gaza opportunities to express themselves though art, dance, music, story-telling, theatre and puppetry; to get support from the larger community; and to have fun and just be children. It was developed to address the needs of traumatized children after the 2009 assault on Gaza and provide much needed pyschosocial support.

You may already know about our fight around the Oakland museum that banned our children’s art exhibit. The art is just that: art produced by children as part of our Let the Children Play program. Art like that produced by Asil, a ten-year-old from Gaza.

Seen below this message, Asil painted a picture of herself in jail. Written between the bars, Asil says “I have a right to live in peace,” “I have a right to live this life,” and “I have a right to play.”

On Thursday, September 8, 2011, MECA received the disturbing news that the Museum of Children’s Art (MOCHA) in Oakland decided to cancel “A Child’s View From Gaza,” an exhibit of Palestinian children’s art.

After months of planning and establishing a close partnership with the museum, we were saddened to learn that the children of Gaza would be denied the opportunity to share their experiences, art, and creativity with the Bay Area community. For 23 years, MECA has been a witness to how organizations like the Jewish Community Relations Council and Jewish Federation can intimidate groups and individuals who try to present the reality and perspectives of Palestinians.

All of us at MECA understand all too well the enormous pressure that the museum came under from these organizations and their allies. But we are deeply disappointed by this decision, and I ask you to join us in expressing our concern and urging the museum to reverse its decision.