NJP/I News & Upcoming Events

                A Tribute to Jonathan and Barbara Hill

On joining Northfielders for Justice in Palestine Israel NJP in 2010 Jonathan and

Barbara jumped right in, offering their talents in support of justice for Palestine.

In their first year, Jonathan, as a retired emeritus English Professor from St Olaf

College, created a descriptive brochure for NJP, explaining our purposes, goals, and

our stand for justice in Palestine-Israel. Copies of this brochure have since been

distributed at our events.

Jonathan and Barbara were soon after instrumental in one of NJP’s grandest

undertakings–the hosting of a Palestine Gala Dinner held in St John’s Hall. Barbara,

the chef and former owner of Treats in Northfield, organized a wonderful Palestinian

feast. Jonathan assisted Barbara, including trucking cartons of dishes loaned from St

Olaf College. With 250 attendees, with its food, ambience, and guest speaker

Jennifer Lowenstein, the event raised $4500 for Bright Stars of Bethlehem.

Jonathan took the initiative for bringing several major speakers to Northfield. The

first was Dr. Mads Gilbert, of Norway, speaking on his work in Gaza. There was

the Israeli activist, Miko Peled, author of The General’s Son (and in 2024 founder of

the Palestine House of Freedom in Washington DC). In addition there was Grant

Smith, originally from Minnesota, who heads up the Institute for Research on

Middle Eastern Policy in DC.

At that time Grant Smith was coordinating with the Washington Report on Middle

East Affairs an annual day-long event at the National Press Club in DC, which hosted

talks on the Palestine situation by renowned speakers. Jonathan, along with fellow

NJP members, was an enthusiastic attendee at these conferences.

In 2014 Barbara and Jonathan helped inaugurate our annual Nakba Event on Bridge

Square. They created a 4’ x 8’ map of 1948 Palestine, marking the locations of the

over 400 villages that had been depopulated and razed when Israel became a state.

This map is still in use 12 years later. Barbara was always ready to use her artistic

talents in creating signs and posters for many events. We were saddened to lose

Barbara in 2015.

Jonathan led work on creating an NJP scholarship for travel to Palestine, suggesting

the title The Ruth Hansen Palestine Travel Scholarship, in honor of our matriarch

and co-founder, Ruth Hansen. Several scholarships have been awarded while

Jonathan was a leader on the Scholarship Committee.

One of Jonathan’s favorite actions for Justice for Palestine was standing with other

NJP members on the 35W freeway overpass at Exit 81, holding up with one of our

two large “Freeway Banners,” either End Israeli Apartheid or Justice for

Palestine. He researched with the MDOT where it was legal and safe to stand to

demonstrate in this way. He liked to count the number of cars per minute passing by

under the overpass, and determined that this was a very effective method of

communication. Jonathan, with others, was also always ready to participate in

standing and holding a banner in Northfield in Ames Park at the corner of 5th Street

and Hwy 3. Standing there in the cold, heat and the wind. He did draw the line when

the temps were below freezing.

After joining a Pillsbury Protest at General Mills in Minneapolis, Jonathan helped

organize a large NJP postcard mailing, urging the boycott of Pillsbury products. Such

events ended up being effective: General Mills pulled out of their operations in a

West Bank settlement.

Given his oratory skills, Jonathan was happy to moderate and speak at NJP events,

and he organized two readings of remarkable reports on Palestine by the UN

Raporteur, Francesca Albanese.

With Jonathan’s 15 years of a combination of skillful oratory and written word, 

active witness, confident initiative and sense of justice, it is hard to imagine NJP

without Jonathan at the table, at the podium or on the freeway overpass.  He has

inspired such significant and effective NJP endeavors. Jonathan’s dignity, eloquence,

honesty, intelligence, kindness, sense of humor, and British civility always contributed

to bringing NJP a noble reputation and inspired the rest of us to measure up. 

Jonathan made us proud to be associated with NJP.    Thank you, Jonathan.