TURNERS FALLS — To help Ismail Asaad, owner of the Mohawk Falafel and Shawarma food truck, put down roots in Franklin County, the community is banding together to support Asaad’s goal of finding a property where he can reside while also continuing his business.

Asaad, who opened his food truck in Greenfield in January 2023, has been serving Palestinian and Middle Eastern cuisine, with menu items that include plates, sandwiches, starters and salads — many of which include falafel, hummus and shawarma meats. Since opening his food truck, Asaad has moved around Greenfield and now operates near Unity Park at 182 Second St. in Turners Falls.

Having come from a small village outside of Hebron in the West Bank of Palestine, he lived in Ohio and New York before settling in Franklin County in 2021. Since then, he’s built a community around his food truck. However, Asaad said he’s run into complications when it comes to having a permanent space to park his truck, along with a lack of access to electricity, plumbing and a bathroom.

So, Western Mass Showing Up for Racial Justice, a local chapter of a national racial justice activism network, has set up a fundraiser to support Asaad’s efforts to find a permanent home for the Mohawk Falafel and Shawarma food truck. He expressed his desire to buy a property that would have a house, land for his food truck (or potentially a restaurant instead) and a farm for growing produce, as well as a space where people can gather and continue to host events about Palestine, the environment and agriculture.

“I’m looking to build the community,” Asaad said.

“We could invite people and we work together [on] how we could develop ourselves and our community,” he continued. “We should help more and be active. I believe this is our responsibility as people — to be active in our community and do something to help each other.”

To help support this endeavor, Western Mass Showing Up for Racial Justice started a fundraiser for Asaad last year, and a fundraising video talking about Asaad’s community impact and goals was produced over the winter. Western Mass Showing Up for Racial Justice member Koby Leff helped put together the video with fellow members.

This video showcases the community element centering around Mohawk Falafel and Shawarma, with gatherings in the summer months like movie nights. The video also showcases his work as a Palestinian activist and the connections he’s made with people in Franklin County.

Leff said the fundraiser is done through a lens of both seeking to support a pillar of the community and as part of Western Mass Showing Up for Racial Justice’s commitment to providing mutual aid and reparations for the impact of United States imperialism on people of color and Indigenous people domestically, as well as abroad in Palestine.

“These problems are so massive, and obviously structural societal change is needed, but we as individuals have limited avenues to that structural societal change. ... We don’t want to just sit on ours hands, waiting for something to have this perfect, far-reaching impact,” Leff said. “[Asaad] is such a pillar of this community, and gives so generously and has demonstrated what reciprocity and community care can look like. It sort of felt like a no-brainer to support him, both out of our love for him as a person and a friend.”

So far, the campaign has raised $43,490 toward a $100,000 goal, with 365 donations made. Asaad and Leff explained this money will help afford property that Asaad said he’s still looking for.

As the campaign continues, Leff suggested the best course of action is to make monthly, recurring donations. However, any amount donated at any time makes a difference toward providing Asaad with “a place that he loves and will give him stability and the headspace to focus on his business, his activism and his community projects.”

When asked about his reaction to the donations so far, Asaad said the support makes his “heart smile.”

“When I feel the support from people here, [it] makes me cry,” Asaad said. “Cry and laugh [because of] how much love lots of people [are] giving. There is no border between humanity.”

The fundraiser can be found at givebutter.com/4rNErs. Mohawk Falafel and Shawarma is open Tuesdays through Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Erin-Leigh Hoffman can be reached at ehoffman@recorder.com or 413-930-4231.