West Bank tales from two Tar Heel alums
By: Brian Phelps, Stephen Lassiter
Issue date: 1/28/08 Section: Opinion
Today marks the first day of Palestine Week at UNC. As May 2007 graduates of the University and teachers in the West Bank city of Ramallah, Palestine, we write to invite you to the week's events.
While the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is immensely complicated, the organizers of Palestine Week have tried to make it as accessible as possible. The Tuesday program "Israel and Palestine for Beginners" is specifically tailored for that purpose. Students have the opportunity Wednesday to hear firsthand accounts of what it's like in Palestine from Tar Heels who have visited.
Living and working here for five months has been an exercise in trying to make sense of what's going on around us. We are regularly perplexed by the stories we hear and the experiences we have. Given this opportunity, we feel obligated to share them.
When we asked our ninth-grade students to write an essay about important events in their lives, we didn't expect to receive the stories we did. We knew that Israel has held the West Bank under military occupation for 40 years, but what exactly does that mean?
It means some of our students have never swam in the Mediterranean, despite being able to see it from West Bank hilltops.
It means many of our students are prohibited from using Israel's airport, only 30 miles away, and instead must travel four hours to the airport in Amman, Jordan.
It means some of our students have not left the West Bank in years because, despite living on their own land, the Israeli government would bar their re-entry.
It means one of our students could visit her sister undergoing chemotherapy in Jerusalem only twice over many months because she needed a permit from the Israeli government to do so.
It means our students, only 13 and 14 years old, have written about running away from Israeli soldiers and tanks.
It means Christina, the best friend of one of our students, was beaten by Israeli soldiers because she tried to go around a military checkpoint while running late to school. The ambulance taking her to a Jerusalem hospital was delayed at the same checkpoint.
While the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is immensely complicated, the organizers of Palestine Week have tried to make it as accessible as possible. The Tuesday program "Israel and Palestine for Beginners" is specifically tailored for that purpose. Students have the opportunity Wednesday to hear firsthand accounts of what it's like in Palestine from Tar Heels who have visited.
Living and working here for five months has been an exercise in trying to make sense of what's going on around us. We are regularly perplexed by the stories we hear and the experiences we have. Given this opportunity, we feel obligated to share them.
When we asked our ninth-grade students to write an essay about important events in their lives, we didn't expect to receive the stories we did. We knew that Israel has held the West Bank under military occupation for 40 years, but what exactly does that mean?
It means some of our students have never swam in the Mediterranean, despite being able to see it from West Bank hilltops.
It means many of our students are prohibited from using Israel's airport, only 30 miles away, and instead must travel four hours to the airport in Amman, Jordan.
It means some of our students have not left the West Bank in years because, despite living on their own land, the Israeli government would bar their re-entry.
It means one of our students could visit her sister undergoing chemotherapy in Jerusalem only twice over many months because she needed a permit from the Israeli government to do so.
It means our students, only 13 and 14 years old, have written about running away from Israeli soldiers and tanks.
It means Christina, the best friend of one of our students, was beaten by Israeli soldiers because she tried to go around a military checkpoint while running late to school. The ambulance taking her to a Jerusalem hospital was delayed at the same checkpoint.
Viewing Comments 1 - 10 of 20
w
posted 1/28/08 @ 11:20 AM EST
Good article. Presenting the realities on the ground in the West Bank is something a lot of us sorely needed. My only problem is that there is no mention of why the Israeli government is there - a mention of suicide bombings and rocket attacks would be appropriate for this article. (Continued…)
C
posted 1/28/08 @ 12:45 PM EST
Unfortunately, those ambulances often are often packed with explosives. It's a shame the Philistine apologists must appeal to emotional tales rather than reason or logic to support their case--emotional tales which, of course, exist on both sides of the conflict. (Continued…)
agreed
posted 1/28/08 @ 1:20 PM EST
It's this one-sided view that perpetuates anti-Israeli (and also anti-semetic) sentiments. I have spent some time in Israel and in the west bank. It is equally sad for both sides that children are caught in the middle of the fighting, but I assure you that while your Palestinian students may run from well-disciplined soldiers the Israeli children run from rockets and suicide bombers who attack at random and without discression. (Continued…)
Rabbi Ben Packer
posted 1/28/08 @ 2:55 PM EST
The recent column "West Bank Tales" should have been more appropriately titled "West Bank Half-Truths". To suggest that checkpoints and other defensive actions taken by Israel are actually a response to past atrocities and not a direct response to recent suicide bombings and murderous terrorist shootings is ridiculous and offensive. (Continued…)
D Smith
posted 1/28/08 @ 4:14 PM EST
You article does not even scratch the surface of the reality of the situation. Sure there are security measures that make daily life harder for both Israelis and Palestinian, but these are done out of necessity. (Continued…)
correction
posted 1/28/08 @ 4:35 PM EST
"Palestine week on campus should set up the framework for dealing with the problems of a lack of leadership on the Palestinians side rather than set to legitimize Israel"
i think you mean de-legitimize. (Continued…)
Mordechai
posted 1/28/08 @ 6:05 PM EST
Isn't it more than a little disingenuous to leave out the fact that Israel demolished all the homes of the Jewish settlers it expelled from Gaza in 2005 and that all Israel has received in return is indiscriminate rocket fire on civilian areas? This goes on even today and could hardly be considered a "past atrocity". (Continued…)
A
posted 1/28/08 @ 7:49 PM EST
I encourage every single person who has posted a message decrying this article to attend Tuesday's event. I am not arguing the merits of this article but rather noting how the comments that have followed reek of common misconceptions and speak of the very simplistic and largely one sided historical account you subscribe to. (Continued…)
BustaCat
posted 1/30/08 @ 1:57 PM EST
Terrorism is a reaction to overwhelming odds, an act of desperation. I agree that Israel's occupation makes life harder on the vast majority of Palestinians AND Israeli's. (Continued…)
joe
posted 1/30/08 @ 3:16 PM EST
Let's see what the benevolent, totally innocent and completely beyond criticism Israeli government is doing today:
http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5jvDaCt4zqHIjf82VeaHIgwCw4poQ
Israel's top court backs cuts in Gaza supplies
4 hours ago
JERUSALEM (AFP) ? Israel's Supreme Court said on Wednesday it backed the state's decision to cut supplies of fuel and electricity to the Hamas-run Gaza Strip, despite concerns of a humanitarian crisis. (Continued…)
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