The family from Iraq al Manshiyya has lived in a refugee camp since 1948, first in a tent, then a shack, finally in a block home with electricity and water. The fences can be closed at any time. Israeli soldiers can walk in at any time, as they did last year in the middle of the night, throwing flour and oil into the street. Usually the refugees are free to leave the camp to seek work. Sometimes there is curfew and they cannot even leave their homes.
Palestinian people are courageous and gracious.
We stayed two nights with our friend's family. I met his mother, his toddler son, his brothers and a young nephew. One night I listened to nine other men from the camp, elders and younger men, tell me they do not understand why Kosovo is different to America in 1999 than Palestine was in 1948. Willie met his modest wife and sisters in another room. I drank more tea and coffee than I thought I could possibly hold.