Local Cyclists raise £250 for Gaza Sunbirds para-cycling team
Written by James Beecher
On Saturday 6 January, the Cargo Bikes of Stroud group - a loose network of around 50 riders - organised a “Gaza Solidarity Ride” from Stroud to Brimscombe and back.
Gaza Solidarity bike ride in Stroud
Editors note:
Cargo Bikes of Stroud run a mass bike ride on the first Saturday of the month from Brimscombe Mill (home of The Bike Drop and the Long Table) to the bike shop in the centre of Stroud. The rides comprise old and young riding all manner of manual, electric bikes, trikes and cargo bikes.
This ride was part of an international day of rides which took place in over 60 locations worldwide – including Bristol, Swindon, London, Manchester, Washington, Nashville.
The day of solidarity bike rides was called by the Gaza Sunbirds para-cycling team. In Stroud, collections were made towards the Gaza Sunbirds’ “Emergency Aid for Gaza” appeal.
Through cash collection and online donations the Cargo Bikes of Stroud group has together raised over £250.
The ride was accompanied with Palestinian music played through a sound-system pulled along by a trike. The playlist was put together by Palestinian living locally, Kareem, who described it as:
“A mix of songs representing a range of contemporary Palestinian music. Songs that celebrate resistance and Palestinian culture are very meaningful at this time, as we experience the theft and attempted erasure of culture. Palestinian music has a history of resistance and carries the ancestral joys, resilience and deep rootedness of our people to our land which can never be shaken… existence is resistance.
Thank you for being here and enjoy!”
The music and ride prompted lots of positive reactions from passing motorists and members of the public in Stroud.
Gaza Sunbirds is a para-cycling team consisting of six members. Alaa al-Dali, who founded the group, had dreamed of riding in the Olympics for Palestine until he was shot in his right leg by and Israeli sniper when watching the Great March of Return protests, on 30th March 2018.
Three months later he announced his goal of becoming Palestine’s first para-cyclist. The other members of the Gaza Sunbirds are also para-cyclists who lost their legs in the Israeli state’s response March of Return protests and previous Israeli military action.
Until recently, Gaza Sunbirds had been training in a bid to enter the 2024 Paralympics. Training has been off the cards since the attacks by Hamas and other armed groups in southern Israel on October 7th, and the brutal siege, relentless barrage of airstrikes and extensive ground invasion by Israeli military forces in retaliation.
There is a humanitarian disaster in Gaza, prompting a Gaza Sunbirds team members to turn to helping the community in any way they can.
ISABEL DEBRE and WAFAA SHURAFAGaza Sunbirds have so far:
- Distributed 21 tons of food and essentials (supporting 40,000 people)
- Provided 50 essential baby packages, capable of lasting ten days
- Purchased and distributed 100 blankets and 100 duvets
- Distributed 900 hot meals
Mohammed Abu Julia, 33, the manager of the Gaza Sunbirds team, and a local journalist, says
“Everyone is afraid, everyone is actually terrified. They’re afraid of losing their loved ones, afraid of losing their own lives… Honestly, ever since I was 10 and became aware about all this happening, this is the first time that I feel like the situation is catastrophic. […] Water, the environment – there’s huge amounts of trash in the streets because the municipality can’t remove any of it.
There’s no fuel, no electricity, no water.
It’s a one-sided war – it’s an extermination war from one very strong side, an oppressor that is supported by the US and a lot of European countries.”
— James Beecher, ride organiser
Member discussion