Wadi Foquin Sister City
Illegal
Settlement
of
Betar Illit
Begun in
1985
2008
2013
Midnight Home Raids
By Military
September 2024
Protective Presence
Delegation
January 2025
November 16, 2023
Home demolition
January 2025
Soccer Academy
Wadi Foquin – Alameda Sister City
Compatibility
We are highlighting six areas of compatibility which will provide opportunities for mutual learning and growth
Family Oriented Communities with Strong
Support for Children, Youth, Elderly, &
Disabled
• Wadi Foquin and Alameda both value family life and have strong emphasis on the development of children & youth through education, recreation, and special programs.
Their compassion and respect for the elderly and inclusion of those differently abled are also echoed with many Alameda families.
• Both communities also have pride In multi-generational family heritages which includes extended families and community networks.
• Our intention is for our initial activity to center on exchange of youth soccer teams with volunteer support from families and communities.
Spiritual Traditions & Customs
• Wadi Foquin and Alameda both share rich spiritual traditions and customs. • Wadi Foquin is a primarily Muslim community - and the recently renovated Islamic Center of Alameda knows Wadi Foquin and is a strong supporter of the sister city proposal. We are meeting during the sacred season of Ramadan where both Muslim communities here and in Wadi Foquin are observing daily fasting, community meals, and gift giving
• Alameda is a multi-religious community with different faiths and traditions. Buena Vista United Methodist Church has been a long-time friend of Wadi Foquin and celebrates an interfaith relationship.
• Sharing of spiritual traditions and customs are cultural practices that can educate and inform one another
“religion is the impulse for culture, and the culture is the form of religion.” Paul Tillich
Farm History & Culture
• Alameda has a history of farming in what is now known as Bay Farm Island.
The desire for fresh produce is provided with “Farmer’s Markets” held twice a week in the West End of Alameda.
• Urban Farming and access to healthy produce is also embodied with the Alameda Point Collaborative “Farm2Market” program.
• Wadi Foquin is a farming village with every family owning their own farmland, some for produce markets in Bethlehem, and many for their own consumption in their own form of “farm to table” cuisine now popular in American culture.
• Wadi Foquin and Palestine in general are known for their high quality olive oil and harvesting of olive trees.
Historic Relationship to the Land and
Environmental Practices
• In the renaming of Jackson Park to Chochenyo Park on Encinal Avenue, the City of Alameda acknowledged the original indigenous people who lived in what is now Alameda. Indigenous practices of being in relationship with the land are highlighted at the park and are part of a growing consciousness of environmental awareness in this era of climate change.
• Wadi Foquin residents are indigenous to their land, and similar to Native Americans, have a special relationship with the land. They understand the need to protect the natural environment and the desire to live in harmony with and preserve ancient ecological systems of flora, fauna, and native habitat.
Small Communities in Transition Located
Near Larger Municipalities
• Both Alameda and Wadi Foquin are relatively small insulated communities living with unique identities in a larger municipal region.
• Alameda is an island community often proud of it’s unique identity amidst a Bay Area often identified with internationally known San Francisco. • Wadi Foquin is a small village located in the Bethlehem District, and also near Jerusalem. Both are internationally recognized cities. • Both communities are in transition with relationships connected to military institutions and industries. Alameda is the former home of the Alameda Naval Station which closed in 1996. The military is part of Alameda’s history and identity, but its future identity is being re-shaped by the re-development of the former Naval Base. Wadi Foquin currently exists under Israeli military occupation but envisions a future free from occupation and full empowerment for self-determination and community planning.
Values of Peace, Justice, Equality,
Freedom, and Inclusion
• Wadi Foquin and Alameda both embrace these compatible values as aspirational for their respective communities. Both communities live in different contexts, however, and these differences can provide great opportunity for mutual learning and growth