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Your choices make a difference! WHAT’S IN YOUR CART? Your choices make a difference!

This year, YOU can help bring a just and lasting peace to the Holy Land with careful shopping

The United Methodist General Conference has called on all nations to boycott products made in illegal settlements on occupied land. This is not a boycott of Israel or Israeli goods.

It is a boycott of products made outside Israel’s internationally recognized borders and falsely labeled to get US tax exemptions.

The UMC opposes Israel’s occupation of land outside its internationally recognized borders. The town of Bethlehem is in occupied territory.

Bethlehem today still exists as the town where Christ was born. Bethlehem today is a real town in the occupied West Bank

signed by almost 3,000 Palestinian Christians! Bethlehem’s people are suffering and imprisoned. They have asked for our help. “Our word is a cry of hope” - from the Kairos Palestine Document signed by almost 3,000 Palestinian Christians!

Inside Bethlehem today are watchtowers, checkpoints, refugee camps, & walls

Bethlehem is surrounded by expanding Israeli settlements built in violation of international law.

Products made in illegal settlements and industrial zones support oppression. Confiscation of Palestinian land & water Home demolitions Building of new illegal settlements Pollution of Palestinian farmland Health problems, including cancer, due to soil and crop contamination Theft of resources from occupied territory

Israel has destroyed over 25,000 Palestinian homes

and countless orchards that families depend on

Hazardous waste flows from settlement industries onto Palestinian land.

Boycott, a form of nonviolent direct action, has worked many times to end injustice.

It can work again! Settlement industries help fund human rights violations and fuel conflict. Please boycott settlement goods, including….

Ahava Ahava products are made in Mitzpe Shalem, an illegal settlement, with minerals and mud from the Dead Sea. They are sold in depart-ment stores and pharmacies, and are carried sometimes by TJ Maxx, Marshall’s, and Ulta.

Keter Plastic Products Plastic containers Tool boxes Furniture Toys Outdoor storage & Indoor storage Made in an illegal settlement

Ram Quality Toys These toys are made in Barkan, an illegal settlement. They are sold by Edushape as Interstar Toys and by Toys R Us as part of its Imaginarium Discovery Line.

Royalife Linens Sold as Williams Sonoma, Pottery Barn brands! Williams Sonoma, which owns Pottery Barn, imports sheets from Royalife. Their labels say “Made In Israel” but some are from the illegal settlement of Barkan inside the West Bank.

Smart-Fab Disposable Art & Decorative Fabric Made in a settle-ment Used by schools and teachers Smart-Fab is sold online through Staples, Wal-Mart, Amazon and other vendors and school supply stores. It is made by Dispobud in the settlement of Barkan.

So what should we buy?

There are many alternatives to settlement products There are many alternatives to settlement products. If you’re shopping for gifts, consider the following:

DO BUY Fair Trade Products from Caanan Fair Trade canaanfairtrade.com Canaan Fair Trade Olive Oil and other delicacies come from Jenin, Palestine Fair Trade creates equity in commerce that is sustainable and can provide hope.

DO BUY Fair Trade products from Ten Thousand Villages Phoenician Glass from Hebron Tenthousandvillages.com

DO BUY Fair Trade products from Diyar in Bethlehem www.annadwa.org/ecommerce

DO BUY Fair Trade products from Sunbula at sunbula.org

Remember…. Our buying decisions can make a difference! Please make careful choices in 2015

Answering the call from Palestinian Christians For more information, contact info@kairosresponse.org www.kairosresponse.org Answering the call from Palestinian Christians