The Mahmoud S Taman Foundation

Statement on Gaza

The M.S. Taman Foundation stands for peace and justice as we continue to pursue our goal of supporting grassroots social justice initiatives to help improve our communities around the world. We carry out our founder, Dr. Mahmoud Shawky Taman’s, legacy everyday through the Foundation's commitment to his mission of living in service of others. This includes serving people facing oppression. Therefore, the Foundation seeks to raise awareness about the realities of the current humanitarian crisis of the Palestinian people. We call to action communities around the world, including our supporters, to speak up to end the war on Gaza.

The M.S. Taman Foundation condemns the occupation of Gaza by the Israel government and the ongoing genocide of innocent Palestinian people executed through the Israeli military forces. Neither do we condone the attack on Israeli civilians of October 7, 2023. Our concern is the lives of innocent civilians.

We appeal to our supporters and those who knew Dr. Taman to become aware of the catastrophic humanitarian crisis occurring in Gaza and the realities of the unprecedented rising death toll and suffering of the Palestinian people who have been under siege throughout the 75-year long occupation of their land.

In the months since October 2023 the world has witnessed daily atrocities of violence on Gaza. Continued bombing and on the ground warfare is occurring every day and the loss of life, homes, and neighborhoods continues in shocking numbers. The reality of the violence is tracked by various independent international charitable organizations.

Statistics (LINK) from February 3, 2024 published by Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor (LINK) are: 35,096 civilian deaths, including at least 13,642 children. An additional 67,240 civilians are injured. Two million Palestinians have been displaced from their homes and neighborhoods and there is massive destruction of property, including over 283,200 homes. There are children without parents and parents who no longer have children. 

Public infrastructure has been decimated leading to conditions of chaos with over 334 damaged schools, 170 destroyed press headquarters, and 1,720 destroyed industrial facilities. The Israeli military has pursued attacks on any and all buildings including 235 targeted medical facilities and hospitals, killing and injuring almost 689 healthcare staff, and destroying 482 ancient churches and mosques. 121 journalists attempting to report on conditions in Gaza have been killed.  

The Israeli military is openly violating the international laws of war established by the United Nations Accords.  In December 2023 the government of South Africa brought formal legal charges against Israel for genocidal acts in Palestine before the United Nations, International Court of Justice. 

Current conditions within Gaza are desperate as Israel continues to restrict access to clean water, food, and humanitarian aid. Palestinian people are dying from starvation, thirst and disease.  Whether or not you are knowledgeable of the long history of the occupation, we all can recognize the inhumanity occurring in front of our eyes.

The Foundation strongly encourages anyone who knew Dr. Taman or has been moved by his legacy to speak out within your community against the mass killing of innocent people in Palestine, as he would have. We ask that you join us in calling for:

• A complete ceasefire and an end to the blockade and the war on Gaza

• Withdrawal of Israeli forces

• Rapid deployment of international humanitarian and peace keeping forces

• Immediate humanitarian aid that ensures Palestinians have unrestricted access to:

  • food, shelter and clean water

  • medical care and medical supplies

  • electricity and fuel

• Peaceful release of political prisoners and hostages

• Diplomatic solutions

The list below includes helpful links with informative resources about the war on Gaza and the history of the Palestinian occupation including specific instructions on how to contact your political representatives in the United States including how to prepare to talk with your elected officials.

Resource List with Additional Links: If you wish to learn more - we advise you to review the following resources:

1. Statistics from Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor as of February 3, 2024 (LINK)

2. Contact your political representatives to end US funding and call for a ceasefire (LINK)

3. A Palestine Reading List (LINK)

4. Definition of a Genocide/Why this is a Genocide (LINK)

5. Films to watch by Palestinian filmmakers (LINK)

6. Books to read by Palestinian authors (LINK)

7. Facebook Videos:

• Dr. Gabor Maté Author and Trauma Expert, Infante survivor of the Holocaust (LINK)

• Miko Peled, discusses the Israeli Army and its role in terrorism (LINK)

8. Resources on Palestine from the Rutgers University Center for Security, Race, and Rights, (LINK)

2023 Community Grantee Highlights

In the year 2023, we have seen widespread humanitarian injustices around the world. In response to these crises, our communities have mobilized, organized, and created impactful change. The Mahmoud S Taman Foundation is proud to have aided these grassroots organizations, non-profits, and individual dedicated community members by providing funding through our Community Grants Program. Over $10,400 was granted this year alone to 10 different organizations and initiatives locally, nationally, and internationally. Since the foundation was founded in 2011, over $130,000 has been distributed as grants to initiatives around the world working hard to improve lives and provide assistance to those in need. The Foundation honors the legacy of Dr. Mahmoud Shawky Taman - a community leader and psychiatrist who lived and served in the Chippewa Valley in Northwestern Wisconsin for 44 years. The Foundation's purpose is to advance missions and projects which strive to better their communities by providing support in areas such as youth education and the arts, mutual aid, food and water insecurity, multicultural and interfaith events and efforts, and international medical aid.

The grantees this year are making tremendous changes in their communities and are driven by small but powerful teams supported often through volunteering, grassroots networks, and mutual aid. Several youth education initiatives supported by the Community Grants program this year were led by individuals dedicated to advocating for children around the world and driven by their passion to uplift the youth of their communities. In Southern Virginia, Burnt Bridges LLC used their community grant from the Foundation to support a free community event supporting local youth by providing backpacks and school supplies to families in the area. Their successful event held in August included a free barbecue, featured food vendors and local businesses, games and activities for the kids, and a backpack drive that distributed over 200 backpacks within their community. In youth education, one of our first recipients of the year was the Boys and Girls Club of Chippewa Falls which supports the local community by providing after-school care and hands-on education for children. They utilized grant funds to support their Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiative to ensure their after school child care program is culturally inclusive and focuses on expanding academic, behavioral, and social skills for the youth in the Chippewa Valley. 

We also continued to provide support to previous international community grantees like the more recently established school Kalpak English Academy based in Kyrgyzstan. This vital educational program started by former U.S. Peace Corps Volunteer and Director of the school, Noah Bratcher, provides English language education to rural Kyrgyz students and continuing education programs for educators in their community. In other international education efforts, advocate and educator, Rahat Khpalwak, secured a grant from the Foundation to improve and expand the library at Rokyan High School in Afghanistan, providing needed books for students.

Across the world we saw individual community members like Mrs. Khayraiya Mohamed Arafa taking action to secure funding for local schools like the El Nour School for Girls in Alexandria, Egypt, which is one of the few schools for blind students in Egypt. She utilized funds to ensure adequate and safe housing for young women who are displaced while transitioning between high school and college. Another individually led initiative in Egypt received funds for textbooks and tuition support for students pursuing Islamic Studies under Al Azhar University. These students are advocated for by Ms. Amal El Iraqi who also directed grant funds into the community as food donations for families and provided inaccessible medical supplies and equipment necessary for members of the community seeking safe and proper healthcare. 

Every year the Taman Foundation focuses grant efforts into individuals and organizations that are working tirelessly to end food and water insecurity around the world. This year, local Chippewa Valley community member Miah Renteria advocated on behalf of the Kwarikar Orphan Foundation in Uganda to install a water pump providing fresh water for their community. Back in Wisconsin, repeat grantee Agnes’ Table at the Legacy Community Center utilized grants funds to support their operations providing free meals to the community and families in need of additional support. These grantees have proven their dedicated efforts to providing needed resources to their communities at home and abroad. 

In culture and the arts, the Eau Claire Area Hmong Mutual Aid Association, along with repeat grantees JONAH (Joining Our Neighbors Advancing Hope) and Welcoming New Neighbors, held their annual River Prairie Multicultural Festival to honor the rich cultures of our local community here in Northern Wisconsin through cultural exchange, the arts, and supporting local businesses and organizations run by community members from diverse backgrounds. The Foundation was also proud to support Friends of PBS Wisconsin in The Wisconsin Muslim Project, highlighting Muslim community members through a free and public event involving a photography collection, screening, and diverse panel of Muslim voices from the community. 

In 2023, the Taman Foundation intends to continue to provide financial support for community organizations, projects, and initiatives through funding of grants up to $1000. Our grant recipients this year are a testament of the kindness and passion for transformative change that exists in the hearts of our community members here in Wisconsin and around the world. Advocates and pioneers of justice are needed now more than ever and it is our goal to carry out the legacy of Dr. Taman through grant funding supporting direct action within our communities.