*** THIS TITLE IS AVAILABLE FOR PRESALE ONLY, BOOKS WILL NOT SHIP UNTIL JUNE 2025 ***
Writing and Art from a Palestinian Prisoner
The Israeli occupation of Palestine has been brought home by the “war on terror” in the U.S.
Shukri Abu Baker, CEO of the Holy Land Foundation, the largest Muslim charity in the U.S. until 2001, was unjustly convicted of material support for terrorism along with four other colleagues after two trials in 2008. He was sentenced to 65 years for aiding the Palestinian people.
In Light from Deep Under, Shukri writes with the pain and solidarity of being Palestinian about life in prison, his dreams of eventual freedom, his unapologetic humanitarian work, the bedrock of family, and the horrors of contemporary Palestine. From within the oppression of a U.S. maximum security prison, his remarkable voice repudiates such silence. His impulse is always toward wholeness, or at least repair, and hope for his future, his beloved family, and his equally beloved country.
“As this extraordinary book demonstrates, despite being unjustly imprisoned for sixteen years, Shukri has never lost his ability to hope and to dream.” -- Nancy Hollander, Shukri Abu Baker’s lawyer
“In one of his poems, Shukri talks about how he wants to be remembered. Each time I visit Shukri in prison the process of getting in depresses me to no end. Then, as I walk into the visitation room, there is a ray of sunlight. I see my brother, friend, Shukri Abu Baker smiling at me. As we sit on the white plastic chairs we imagine we are sitting in a cafe in Jerusalem’s old city, or Silwad, or Yafa drinking tea with mamamiya and talking for hours. And we did so every time. We sat and talked and laughed for hours and hours. His humor, his strength, and his faith carried us far beyond the prison walls. The hours passed like minutes and then we were forced apart by a guard’s whistle. Inmates on this side, visitors on that side. It was impossible to hold back the tears as I left him there in that cold, cruel place. But then I remembered Shukri’s jokes, his laughter, and his faith, and that carried me past the sadness and towards hope. The sense of gratitude that I feel for having Shukri Abu Baker as a brother and friend cannot be summed up in words. Thank you, Shukri.” -- Miko Peled, founder and president of Palestine House of Freedom; author of Injustice, The Story of the Holy Land Foundation Five and The General’s Son, Journey of an Israeli in Palestine.
“… listen carefully to Shukri’s voice, learn from his experiences, and take direct action on his behalf.” -- from the introduction by Dr. David A. McDonald, Professor of Folklore, Indiana University; author of Holy Land Five: Palestinian Charity in the U.S. War on Terror
Proceeds from the sale of this book go to the Sanabel Children’s Foundation.
