Laila El-Haddad

Laila El-Haddad, author of Gaza Momand The Gaza Kitchen, spoke eloquently for the October 2016 Wheels of Justice Festival. In reviewing and sampling her recipes, we’re reminded of the words written on the Apartheid Wall in Bethlehem, “To Exist is the Resist.” Refusing to be defined by the injustices of colonialism, we love how Laila celebrates the goodness of Palestinian culture. We also appreciate how she helps us to see how such basics as food and water can be used as weapons by those in power. Having grown up in Gaza, she understands how water has been severely rationed for Palestinians whereas it flows without restrictions for those who live in illegal Israeli settlements. In thinking about Laila, we are reminded of Mary’s Magnificat, “God has filled the hungry with good things.”