The Progressive

NewsWire

A project of Common Dreams

For Immediate Release
Contact:

Danny Muller, (cell) 917 217 6809, 510 548 0542
info@mecaforpeace.org

Middle East Children's Alliance Launches Campaign to Provide Clean Water for Children in Gaza to Honor the Legacy of Howard Zinn

BERKELEY, Calif.

The Middle East Children's Alliance(MECA)
has begun a new campaign to build a water purification system in Gaza,
in honor of historian and activist Howard Zinn and his wife Roslyn. For
many years, Howard Zinn supported MECA's projects that work for the rights and the well-being of children in Iraq, Palestine and Lebanon.

"Howard and his wife Roz were both personal friends of mine and  for 22 years, Howard helped MECA raise funds for children in Palestine." stated Barbara Lubin, Executive Director of MECA. "On
the first anniversary of Howard's passing, we are honoring their legacy
by taking action to ensure one of the most basic rights of children,
the right to water, for the 1,400 students at the Khan Younis Co-ed
Elementary School in Gaza
. It's the right thing to do."

Howard Zinn (August 24, 1922 - January 27, 2010) was a historian,
playwright, writer and radical activist. He wrote over 20 books
including the best selling classic A People's History of the United States.
Zinn wrote extensively about civil rights, civil liberties and
anti-warmovements. He was active in the civil rights movement and many
of the struggles for social justice over the past fifty years.

Before his death one year ago, Howard Zinn spoke about his relationship with MECA: "The
Middle East Children's Alliance has not only made countless Americans
aware of the problems in the Middle East, but has contributed in the
most practical of ways to bettering the lives of people in that part of
the world."

Since 1988, MECA has provided direct support for clinics, counseling
programs, children's centers and libraries, and organizations working
for the rights of prisoners, women, labor, and Palestinians inside
Israel. In September 2009, MECA launched the Maia Project (Arabic for
"water") to provide Palestinian children with clean, safe drinking water. They
have built and maintained 27 water purification systems, serving 30,000
thousand children. To support their campaign please visit www.mecaforpeace.org.

The Middle East Children's Alliance is a nonprofit organization working for the rights and the well-being of children in the Middle East. MECA supports dozens of community projects for Palestinian children and refugees from Syria. Since 1988 we have delivered $27 million in food and medical aid to Palestine, Iraq, and Lebanon. MECA welcomes the support of all people who care about children and their future.