OVI’s Elanit Green addresses Religion, Empowerment, and the Role of
Women in Nationalist Movements class at Yale University as Dr. Sallama Shaker and OVP’s Malaka Samara listen
on.
It wasn’t that long ago when
Malaka Samara’s family members were jailed or killed during the Palestinian
intifadas. It also wasn’t that long ago when Elanit Green’s mother was at the
sight of a suicide attack in southern Israel and neither knew each other’s
fate.
Notwithstanding difficulties in
living amidst the Second Intifada and beyond, these two women displayed some of
the strongest mental fortitude and determination seen among their peers when
they decided for themselves that the status quo – occupation, violence, and
paralyzing fear – is not what they want to live with.
From April 8-16, Malaka, 35, and
Elanit, 26, told their stories and shared their roles as peace activists to
over 600 audience members in New York City and Southern California. While the
tour spanned about 3,000 miles and encompassed over 20 events of varying
diversity, both women managed to bring a sense of the familiar, a sense of what
it’s like for women to work for peace in Israel and Palestine.
Malaka spoke about the
difficulties of living under occupation—restrictions in movement, lack of
economic opportunity, and confiscations of Palestinian land. Elanit described
the current reality in Israel – since most Israelis do not feel the conflict on
a daily basis, many have become indifferent to solving the conflict and fear
changing the status quo.
Standing crisply at the podium to
scan her American audience, Malaka introduced Women
of Influence, the new program she is leading in OneVoice Palestine.
“I started Women of Influence
because I think that it’s important for every Palestinian to take an action to
end the occupation, and women are some of the most important Palestinian
citizens you can imagine,” she explained. “They are mothers, they are wives,
they are sisters, and they are daughters. And in every household you’ll find a
woman. They educate the new generation, the future leaders. If they are not aware
of the political situation they are not able to make the necessary improvements
in our community.”
OneVoice has offered opportunities not
only for resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but also for progress on
social and political issues facing the Israeli and Palestinian societies. For
Malaka, it is highlighting the importance of empowering women leaders in
Palestine to work to end the occupation. For Elanit, who is politically active
on and off Ben Gurion University’s campus, it is voicing the connection between
the social justice issues inside the Green Line and government spending on
settlements that keep the occupation in place.
“[What was missing from the social justice protests in 2011
was that] all of the power and energy behind the protests didn’t have a
political link and Israelis didn’t ask where the money was going,” Elanit
explained. “We haven’t had any negotiations for years now, and we’re frozen in
our political situation.
“So in 2012, OneVoice pointed on those links that were
missing and tried to connect the economic situation to the fact that we’re
frozen in negotiations,” she continued. “We’re spending so much on security and
settlement expansion. OneVoice tried to create the link and say that because
we’re frozen in negotiations is part of the reason why we’re having so many economic
problems. We need to freeze the settlements to unfreeze the negotiations.”
The two speakers came to the U.S.
not only to share with American audiences their experiences and efforts, but
also to engage the various communities in the U.S. toward peacebuilding, which
ignited discussion on universal women’s empowerment.
In New York, Malaka and Elanit
took part in a women’s NGO meeting at the United Nations, addressed progressive
rabbinical students at Yeshiva Chovevei Torah, networked with young
professionals, and reached out to students at Fordham Business School, New York
University, Columbia, and nearby Bard and Yale.
Malaka and Elanit also traveled
to Southern California, where they spoke at two events hosted by the Islamic
Center of Southern California, as well as with J Street Young Professionals and
students at Occidental and Santa Monica Colleges, University of Southern
California, University of California-Irvine, and California State University-Long
Beach.
Elanit and Malaka, now home in
their respective communities, will continue to push for an end to the
occupation and advocate for the two-state solution. If the memories of their
difficulties surface again, as they often can, these young women will take
comfort in knowing their present work will make the future a better place for
their peoples.
Malaka Samara addresses UC Irvine’s conflict resolution class.
Elanit Green addresses an anthropology class at Santa Monica College.
