May 2008 marked 60 years of the Nakba, the catastrophe. Sixty years ago 700,000 Palestinians were expelled from their homes and 350 Palestinian villages were destroyed by the Israeli army and militias. Among the most infamous war crimes committed was the Deir Yasin massacre. To this day, Israel has refused the return of 6 million refugees. The Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel issued an appeal, signed by many Palestinian organizations, stating that "Sixty years ago, Zionist militias and gangs ransacked Palestinian properties and destroyed hundreds of Palestinian villages. How can people of conscience celebrate this catastrophe?"

In the Bay Area, the Nakba was commemorated by numerous events and demonstrations. On May 10th at the Civic Center, a peace and solidarity festival took place with bands such as The Coup and Dam (a hip hop group from Lid in occupied Palestine).

Jewish groups also organized solidarity actions. The International Jewish Solidarity Network has circulated a statement calling on people not to celebrate, and Jewish Voice for Peace called on Americans to remember the thousands of Palestinians who have suffered in the creation of Israel. The IJSN disrupted an event at San Francisco JCC called “Israel at Sixty.”

On June 1st, Palestinians and allies demonstrated against "Israel in the garden", a celebration of the birth of Israel . Protesters distrupted an Israeli film festival that was taking place at the Metreon. The streets nearby were also covered with graffiti denouncing the occupation.

Reflections on Israel in Gardens, by an anti-Zionist, former Israeli,Jew | Disruption of the Israeli film festival on June 1 | Anti-Zionist graffiti in San Francisco: 1 | 2 | Pro Palestine demo at "Israel in the Gardens" event

Ethnic Cleansing and the Birth of Israel | Electronic indifada: Nakba, the Palestinian catastrophe | Ten facts about the Nakba | Palestine Maps