CITIZENS: The only viable Arab-Jewish peace-builders
today
Sunday, 26 June 2011
"There are
some things only governments can do,
such as
negotiating binding agreements.
But there are some
things that only citizens outside government can do,
such as changing
human relationships."
-- Dr. Harold Saunders, former U.S.
Assistant Secretary of State, and
Negotiator of five Arab-Israeli treaties
"It
is the network and nexus of dialogue groups, grassroots organizations,
not-for-profits in
the US, Israel/Palestine and elsewhere whose missions are
designed to
advance equality, promote relationships, and lay the groundwork for peace,
that has the
potential to become a grassroots movement.
Such a movement is
necessary to stem the tide of negativity and the ideology of
racism and hate
that is so pervasive in the current political climate.
Therefore, these
groups and organizations should be encouraged, supported,
financed, and
promoted by everyone who still has faith, because
they are for now
the only viable source of peace-building between Arabs and Jews."
-- Nurete
Brenner
in The Magic of a Dialogue Group
(2011)
http://nlbrenner.wordpress.com/2011/06/24/the-magic-of-a-dialogue-group/
and
based on Brenner's 2011
Ph.D. thesis:
THE FIELD BEYOND
WRONGDOING AND RIGHTDOING:
A Study of Arab-Jewish
Grassroots Dialogue Groups in the United States
http://traubman.igc.org/theses.htm#brenner
In her 2011 book for our times, Israeli author Deb Reich clarifies: "The
path to a post-enemies future will be made by those who walk it."
NO
MORE ENEMIES
by Deb Reich
Joshua, Joshua & Reich;
April, 2011, 400 pages
Let's consider and emulate some of the exemplary citizens who refuse to be
enemies.
Right where we live.
Friendship Across Borders (FAB)
http://www.friendshipacrossborders.com/
Israelis, Palestinians and Germans -- adult mentors and university students
-- meet and reconcile.
Rejecting violence and insisting on face-to-face
engagement, they are determined that their shared histories of destruction,
humiliation, and death be redeemed with empathy, cooperation, and creativity.
Meetings are in East Jerusalem and Beit
Jala, at Sapir College near Sderot,and
in Heidelberg and Wurzburg.
The women and men share narratives together, tour
together, study together, eat together, laugh and cry together, dance together,
plan together.
The Muslims, Jews, and Christians support one another
during the hardest times, rejecting military occupation, settlement-land grabs,
violence in Silwan and Ras
el Amud, rocket attacks on Sderot,
and the harming of innocent people.
They admit: "We do not always agree, in fact we
often disagree with one another. We often get emotional, sometimes angry,
sometimes wondering how the "other" cannot understand. But we
talk about our lives and our understandings.
We stay in constant contact. We keep the
dialogue and joint work going."
These citizen-leaders are dedicated to making
co-existence work.
Even when it's hard going.
Especially when it's hard going.
In Mid-June 2001 was born their new Facebook page in English, Arabic, and Hebrew.
VISIT them at
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=127712517278403&v=wall#!/pages/FAB-Friendship-Across-Borders/189735567713363
Olive Trees
Awaken Shared
Holy Land Activity
Largely unreported, throughout the year, many different collectives of
Palestinians and Israelis leave their homes to meet, relate, and harvest and
planet olive trees.
One exciting day, dozens of such women and men
went together to the village of Salem near the city Nablus.
The time is after the harvest is over, when most of
the land is ploughed, the ground is moist from recent rains.
The field is prepared for the joint venture of
planting olive trees.
Establishing roots in relationships and farming for
a sustainable community together.
It was a spectacular sight to see two
nationalities taking responsibility in their own hands.
Young children, teenagers, and adults were smiling,
talking, laughing and shaking hands with each other.
READ there words:
"We are going to be with
people, encourage them and show them that we are with them no matter where or
under what circumstances, and to help them with the most basic thing land,
everyone's land.
Shoshi Enbal,
Israeli teacher
This joint action can
definitely serve as an example to our leaders to make peace.
Buma Enbar,
Israeli elder
"Let's be together and
end this war.
Zaki Ahmed Mohamad
Shtayh, Palestinian teen:
I hope there will be peace,
because it's really fun.
Shira Ziv,
Israeli 11-year-old
WATCH them together:
SOWING
PEACE IN THE MIDDLE EAST:
Israelis
and Palestinians Plant Olive Trees Together For Peace
NDT-TV News -- 02 March 2011
2-min video
Enemies No More
on U.S. College Campuses
Samia Moustapha Bahsoun and Brenda Naomi Rosenberg could be enemies.
Samia is an Arab
American pro-Palestinian of Muslim descent.
Brenda Naomi Rosenberg is a Jewish American Zionist.
Samia lost her grand-mother
and grand-aunt to 1982 raids on Southern Lebanon by Israel, whose ongoing
activities she sees as primary cause of today's crises.
Brenda's identity is inseparable with the history of
Jewish pain and fear, and the people and land of Israel.
In 2009, these apparent "opposites" first
met at an international conference -- Sustained Dialogue Groups in Dialogue
-- described at http://www.monmouth.edu/dialogue_project
READ more about this moment:
ENEMIES
NO MORE: The power of sustained dialogue
by Saliba
Sarsar
05 May 2009
http://www.commongroundnews.org/article.php?id=25440&lan=en&sid=1&sp=0&isNew=1
Today in 2011, Brenda and Samia have sustained
their maturing relationship.
Even more, together they created TECTONIC LEADERSHIP
-- http://www.tectonicleadership.org
The Jew and Arab model, and train others in,
"a new way of leading, a new way of living."
They discover and develop pairs of leaders from
opposite sides of a conflict to take joint ownership in transforming the
relationship, facing challenges together, finding solutions together.
Working together, the pro-Israeli and pro-Palestinian
have discovered and taught that a citizen can and must become pro-both,
pro-everyone.
SEE MUCH MORE at:
Tectonic
Leadership Center for
Conflict
Transformation and Cross Cultural Communication
7:46 min video -- June 2011
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6YQCIIZjpnA
We're Better Together
Demonstrate U.S. Students
More U.S. students continue exporting solutions instead of only
importing problems from overseas.
Interfaith Youth Core (IFYC) student interfaith
leaders have achieved remarkable results helping diverse college students
engage and find common purpose on nearly 100 college campuses.
Acting "Better Together" -- http://www.ifyc.org/better-together
-- students from over 70 campuses coast to coast are successfully engaging
across faiths and traditions to change their relationships and the world.
Better
Together Campaign Film
40 sec. video -- Feb 2011
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DNuFu23ErTI
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These and hundreds of other success stories are preserved at http://traubman.igc.org/messages.htm