Orange County (CA) Residents Gather to Mourn Arafat's Death

November 13, 2004

Source: Los Angeles Times

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/orange/la-me-interfaith13nov13,1,7557678.story?coll=la-editions-orange

On November 13, 2004 the Los Angeles Times reported, "Just hours after a procession of grieving Palestinians accompanied Yasser Arafat to his final resting place half a world away, about 60 of their compatriots and sympathizers gathered in Orange County on Friday to say goodbye to the man many said had left an indelible mark on their national soul. 'He was the one man who brought the Palestinian issue to the world,' [said Tareef Nashashibi, a prominent local Republican and national advisor to the Palestinian American Congress, which, along with the Union of Palestinian-American Women, sponsored the event at Anaheim's Unitarian Church of Orange County.] '[A]nd whether you agreed with him or not, he was the man who spoke for us. It is up to us to continue the struggle and ideology of bringing peace and justice to the Palestinian people.' Joanne Abu Qartoumy, PAC's executive secretary, said the event's purpose, in part, was to counter negative publicity generated by Arafat's death this week in Paris. Arafat, revered by many as a national hero, was reviled by others as the world's most successful terrorist."