About Life Aid for Palestine

A diverse line-up of regional and internationally recognized musicians will perform on Sunday, Sept. 7, at an inspiring event in Brattleboro–and live-streamed worldwide in active solidarity with the people of Gaza. Life Aid for Palestine will raise funds for the Middle East Children’s Alliance, the Good Shepherd Collective, and to Yusuf el-Mobayed, a young Palestinian writer and journalist in Gaza, and his family, with whomVermonters and others worldwide have built a meaningful relationship.

The event will be held at the historic Latchis Theater in downtown Brattleboro, and by livestream to anyone with internet access. Musicians and speakers, who are all donating their time and talent, include local songstress Patty Carpenter and her ensemble, bluesmaster and songwriter Scott Ainslie, Samirah Evans and her band, Dan DeWalt and Kwartetto Mambo, guitarist and singer John Sheldon, percussionist and publisher Michel Moushabeck, award-winning artist of the Hindustani slide guitar Joel Veena, the brilliant Palestinian qanun player Firas Zriek (by video), and oud duet Seyir.

The event is being organized by local advocates for Palestinian justice and liberation and co-sponsored by Southern Vermont for Palestine. “At a time when many of us are feeling helpless in the face of the atrocities happening in Palestine, this is an opportunity to join together, in active solidarity to stand with Palestine and to raise our voices–through music, through giving, through our presence–for life and liberation,” said Michael Hanish, one of the organizers.

Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank are living in dire circumstances imposed by Israel over 77 years of occupation and displacement, which have worsened dramatically during the past 22 months as Israel carries out a U.S.-sponsored campaign of brutal violence, genocide, and starvation that has made Gaza unlivable, organizers noted.

“As the crisis in Palestine deepens, the need grows exponentially,” said Samia Abbass, another event organizer. “This event is a small but crucial gesture of connection, compassion, and commitment to justice.”

Abbass said active solidarity has become a vital form of resistance and care, where individuals and communities extend lifelines to one another across borders, sharing resources, raising awareness, and affirming our shared humanity. “Through the concepts of active solidarity andmutual aid, our participation is not just a donation, not charity. It’s a way to build relationships with Palestinians.”

Vermonters around the state first got to know Yusuf in July 2024 when they participated in a collective video project, Vermonters Read for Gaza, reading excerpts from Yusuf’s moving essay about his home, which was published on the website We Are Not Numbers. Despite overwhelming odds, Yusuf continues to write and record essays documenting life under siege and work on community improvement projects, while caring for numerous family members amid the deepening starvation imposed by Israel and the U.S.

“Life Aid for Palestine is not just a concert. It is an act of solidarity–a reminder that even from far away, we can extend our care and share responsibility for what is happening with our tax dollars,” said Hanish. “Our relationship with Yusuf is a thread in a larger fabric of mutual aid that insists on the value of every life in Gaza, the West Bank, Jerusalem, and beyond.”

In addition to benefitting Yusuf and his family, funds raised at Life Aid for Palestine will support the Good Shepherd Collective, a small but mighty organization that works to dismantle systems of oppression in Palestine through community reporting, advocacy, and documentation; and Middle East Children’s Alliance (MECA), a Berkeley, Calif.,-based nonprofit that runs soup kitchens and other projects that deliver aid directly to Palestinians in Gaza.

Representatives from mutual aid supporters tabling in the lobby will include Power of the Seed, a project that connects individuals and families directly with people in Gaza, and Interlink Publishing of Northampton, Mass., the only Palestinian-run publishing house in the United States.

Tickets are $15 to $25, with no one turned away for lack of funds, and will be available starting August 15. 15. Pre-show starts at 12:30 (EDT), no reserved seats. Please arrive early to claim your seat.