OneVoice Movement

OneVoice Israel’s campaign launch is making headlines

MK Yoel Hasson reading about his triumph over the conflict in 2018. The headlines reads, "Thank you Yoel Hasson."  

 New York, November 30, 2010–OneVoice is generating headlines–literally. On Friday, OneVoice Israel (OVI) launched an ambitious and exciting cyber campaign on Facebook.  The fan page and new application gives people the power to create newspaper headlines and share ideas about tomorrow’s current events.

The campaign launch has exceeded expectations so far as people clamor to create tomorrow’s news today. In the first three days since inception, users have already created over 100 headlines and the Facebook fan page was “liked” by over 1,000 people and counting. OVI’s new application is part of its larger contribution to promote Imagine 2018.

OVI generated some early buzz by sending Facebook messages to the accounts of 200 influential Israelis from mock profiles of themselves in the year 2018.  Then on Sunday and Monday, copies of a spurious newspaper, Israel Tomorrow, were distributed, fastened with the recipients’ photo and a personalized headline. MK Avishay Braverman, who received a newspaper, was particularly impressed with the OVI’s creative campaign.

MK Avishay Braverman reading about his future self in Israel Tomorrow.

"I bless the historical resolution taken on eight years ago to divide the holy land into two states living peacefully next to one another,” said Braverman. “This resolution was difficult and bold, and although it entailed a heavy price, it became possible due to the willingness of both sides to compromise for the sake of future generations and thanks to the public support and undying effort demonstrated by activists from both sides. Members of the OneVoice Movement worked boldly and creatively to promote this vision, and received honor and appreciation."

Other Israeli policymakers who received a newspaper include: Head of the Two States Causus and State Control Committee MK Yoel Hasson, MK Haim Oron, MK Michael Eitan, Head of the National Left Eldad Yaniv. Israel celebrities such as Eyal Kitzis, Rafi Reshef, Didi Harai, and Gilly Kacenelenbogen, a popular blogger and famous trendsetter in Israel, who posted news about it onto his Facebook account, also received newspapers.

Gilly Kacenelenbogen posted an update on Facebook upon receiving his newspaper. He wrote, "This was waiting for my in my mailbox. Very funny and refreshing whoever did this."

Between November 25 and 28, in anticipation of the Facebook launch, OVI also unleashed its “talkback blitz,” bombarding Israel’s most popular news sites, including Ynet and Walla, with banners and hundreds of comments meant to generate  conversations about an end to the conflict by 2018.

It’s no secret that Facebook is the preferred method of online communication with 500 million active users worldwide. By engaging people through social media, OneVoice keeps itself and the two-state solution relevant and in a way that will hopefully excite its moderate base.

The best headlines created by people in Israel will be awarded prizes; however, people around the world are welcome to contribute.   Some of our favorite headlines so far include:

Submission 08) Headline: War! – By-line: The World Cup 2018 Final Tonight: Israel Against Palestine

Submission 18) Headline: Unemployment in Jerusalem is high – By-line: A hundred and twenty unemployed statesmen seeking something to do.

Submission 24) Headline: It started here – By-line: The peace process that healed the world started in Israel

Instructions to add your headline:

Google Translate will be helpful for those who cannot speak or write Hebrew.

- Log on to Facebook and open the OneVoice Israel Fan Page.

- Click on the words written in red to accept and down the Israel Tomorrow application.

- Choose your picture for the future headline by clicking along the arrows until you see one you like.

- Double click on the first Hebrew headline and paste your headline, with a maximum of 28 characters.

- Double click on the second Hebrew sub-headline and paste your sub-heading with a maximum of 50 characters.

- Click the blue banner with yellow writing underneath the picture.

- Type your name in the top box and your e-mail in the second and click the light blue box at the bottom left to continue.

Voila! You’re in a newspaper from the future…

 

Jenin’s youth conceive meaningful mural

An artistic vision of free movement from Jenin to Rafah in 2018.

New York, November 29, 2010–The West Bank city of Jenin is looking a little brighter after 25 local OneVoice Palestine (OVP) youth leaders put the finishing touches on an inspirational mural created over the weekend. 

The mural, located downtown, is an artistically colorful response from the city’s youth, when asked by Project Coordinator Antwan Saca to imagine both Jenin and a sovereign Palestine as a nation seven years after independence, in 2018. 

“When I first asked questions, many of the youths didn’t know how to answer,” explained Saca. “It was as if they had already lost hope and the ability to imagine an end to the occupation.  After supplying a little guidance, they started understanding the project and how to react to it.  As a city, Jenin has suffered a lot in the past six years, so psychologically it was fulfilling to see our activists sending clear messages and sharing personal views about how they wish to imagine Palestine in 2018. Free of occupation, and full of equal rights.”

The mural’s location was coordinated between OVP and the Jenin Municipality. The space is owned by a local Palestinian businessman who donated it to Jenin’s civilian police force (many of whom were on hand) as a medium to promote messages of state and institution building, a requirement the mural overwhelmingly achieves. 

 Palestinian police officials on hand to assist OVP artists and staff.

The purpose of the project, OVP Executive Director Samer Makhlouf reminds us, “Was to inspire the youth of Jenin to play a role in the building of their state.  Contributions made by youths inspire not only themselves but the rest of the community.  They put something on the mural that was honest, true and personal. It was their vision, for their future, for their city.

  At left, a vision of urban development.  At right, a dove of peace coming to life through color.

The creation of the mural was a three step, three day process. Samih Abu Zakieh, a community leader and accomplished local artist, first introduced the youth leaders to the proper methods of creatively exporting their visions and emotions on to paper. The artists then shared their works and drew an entire outline of the mural on to the building.  The following two days were spent animating the mural with injections of revitalizing color.  

“It was a breakthrough to see the youth leaders take ownership of their work of art, and sign it as Shabab Jenin, ‘Jenin’s youth’.  They considered it a personal contribution to the city from the collective youth of Jenin.” said Saca.

  At left, youth leaders brainstorming mural ideas.  At right, an artist signing her work, “OneVoice Palestine, Jenin’s Youth”.

The Jenin mural is the first of many artistic projects OVP is launching in association with the Imagine 2018 campaign. The goal of the murals project is to have youths from every major city in the Palestinian territories creating drawings and murals that represent the visions of their own communities in 2018.

Imagine 2018 is OneVoice’s multiplatform campaign that depicts visions by Israelis and Palestinians of 2018 if a peace agreement is signed versus maintaining the status quo or worse.

“The Jenin mural was the project pilot,” said Makhlouf. “Next week we are going to build off its success and start a new one in Nablus.  We want this project to exist on a national level for all to be inspired by and feel ownership toward Palestinian state building.  If it can start in the mind it can turn into a dream, and ultimately into a reality. I would like to thank OVP staff and volunteers who are deeply content observing the Palestinian youth sector dreaming again, and I would like to thank the trainees for their inspiring spirit.”

So how long will the mural in Jenin stay up?

“As long as it doesn’t get washed away by the rain,” insists Saca. “And we’ve already weather proofed them.”

 

Double the value of your OneVoice donation!

 

London, November 29, 2010–Any donation to OneVoice made through the charity donation Web site, The Big Give, will be doubled from now until 5 a.m. EST (10 a.m. GMT) on Monday, December 6.  

The Big Give's Christmas Challenge program makes it possible for any credit card donation of up to $8,000 (£5,000) to be doubled in value, at an important time when OneVoice is restoring conviction in the two-state solution through innovative programming.

Friends, who chose to donate, can decide whether their contribution is directed toward our ambitious Imagine 2018 campaign launching this winter, or toward our award-winning Youth Leadership Program.

For more information, please contact Executive Director John Lyndon of OneVoice Europe.

Tell us your vision for 2018!

Eid al-Adha, or the Festival of Sacrifice, has just come to a close. With Thanksgiving today and Hanukkah right around the corner, members of OneVoice across the globe are reflecting on all that has happened this year and beginning to make plans for 2011.

This Thanksgiving, we ask you and your family to bring OneVoice’s Imagine 2018 campaign to the dinner table. In between your first turkey leg and a second helping of mashed potatos, let’s change the conversation about Middle East peace, and talk about a future that Israelis, Palestinians, and people around the globe will be thankful for. We invite you to tell us your vision for 2018, and to submit it for inclusion in our multimedia campaign. Learn more »

OneVoice senior youth leaders Mohammad Asideh and Eliran Eyal, having just completed the International Education Program's speaking tour in Southern California, started the conversation and wish to share their reflections with you:

“I am thankful for God, my life, and for possessing a mind that can change when it encounters truth. I wish for a better and more peaceful life unto all. Thank you to OneVoice for all the opportunities they have given me. Most of all, I hope you all have a happy Thanksgiving.”
--Eliran Eyal, Ramat Gan

“On behalf of my colleagues at OneVoice Palestine, I’d like to wish all the families in America a very happy Thanksgiving. I am thankful that my life is full of good and love. Hopefully by next year, we, the Palestinian people, will be living in peace with our neighbors in our own state.”
--Mohammad Asideh, Nablus

What can we do today to create a future Israelis and Palestinians can all be thankful for? Please send us your reflections. Learn more »

Happy holidays, and thank you for all of your past, present, and future support. Donate now.

Jewish congregation inspired by OneVoice youth leaders

From Right to Left: Youth Leader Mohammad Asideh, Rabbi Ken Chasen, Youth Leader Eliran Eyal, One Voice Staff Members China Sajadian and Rachel Steinberg and Rabbi Rachel Timoner.

New York, November 19, 2010—OneVoice youth leaders and staff joined prominent Rabbi Ken Chasen and Rabbi Rachel Timoner in bringing OneVoice’s International Education Program (IEP) to close at the Leo Baeck Temple in Los Angeles, on Friday.

The event marked the final stop of the fifth and final IEP tour of the year. Eliran Eyal and Mohammad Asideh addressed the congregation of approximately 250 people, and shared their personal stories while IEP Director China Sajadian and IEP Manager Rachel Steinberg discussed the OneVoice Imagine 2018 campaign.

“As a movement we don’t prescribe policy,” said Steinberg. “We allow average Israelis and Palestinians to build consensus around final status issues. They can discuss realistic compromises in order to bring about a two-state solution.”

Inspired by the movement’s ability to include the narratives on both sides, the congregation, in planning its annual Israel Matters program trip, announced that this year it would include a visit to the West Bank as well as Israel.  They also hope to meet with and visit OneVoice youth leaders from both OneVoice Israel and OneVoice Palestine.

Rabbi Timoner expressed a desire to more closely collaborate with OneVoice and asked Mohammad and Eliran what her congregation, or the community as a whole, could do to help propel the two-state solution, and keep Israel as a homeland for Jews living both in and out of the country. Eliran stressed how important is for people to realize that both Israelis and Palestinians ultimately share the same goal.

“There is a need for people to pressure leaders to return to negotiations,” he said.

During the evening’s Shabbat service, Rabbi Chasen discussed the importance of hearing about the conflict from those in the region and learning about what happens on the ground.

Rabbi Chasen has met with top Palestinian officials in the past including current Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad. He described Prime Minister Fayyad’s state building process as “astounding.”

This meeting has inspired further collaboration between OneVoice and members of the congregation. This congregation will promote dialogue and seek to bring about change within various communities.

Earlier in the week Mohammad and Eliran also met with students at UCLA, Occidental College, Santa Monica College, and the University of California at Irvine, as they continued to promote communication amongst polarized groups. 

Imagine 2018 is a multiplatform campaign that depicts visions by Israelis and Palestinians of 2018 if a peace agreement is signed versus maintaining the status quo or worse.

Making sense and finding answers to Americans’ support of Israel and Palestine

Mohammad Asideh talking to an anthropology class at Santa Monica College.

By Mohammad Asideh*

For a young man like me, who as a teenager believed in using forceful resistance to combat the military occupation, standing up on stage and talking next to [OneVoice Israel youth leader] Eliran [Eyal] was not easy at first. Neither was repeatedly sharing my personal story with strangers who gathered in the audiences. I reminded myself that nothing about this conflict is easy and that in order to make a difference I must be willing to do whatever it takes.

As I embarked on the journey from the West Bank to the U.S., I asked myself why, as a representative of my people, did I feel it necessary to travel such as long way to talk to Americans about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? Was it because their government is trying to negotiate peace between the two of us? Or was it because the American people have an interest in the Middle East and I am supposed to fascinate them? These questions remained unanswered until the end of an event at San Diego State University. 

When our presentation at the university was over, an old man with a long white beard came up to me and said, "My son, I was in the Middle East in the 1970’s, and I’ve witnessed firsthand the things you’ve spoken about. After I did I decided not to shave my beard until I saw an end to the conflict.  I am now 80 years old and I still haven’t had a chance to shave my beard.  My son, I am afraid that I will die with it."

At that moment things had become clear. I was in the U.S. in order to connect with other people who care. I was there to talk about a realistic solution and to inspire peace and understanding between communities. The old man I spoke with was neither Palestinian nor Israeli, nor was he Muslim or Jewish. He was simply a man who wanted to live to see an end to this century old conflict.

Even though Eliran and I hardly saw eye to eye on anything, what brought us together was our desire to achieve something better for the future generations of Israelis and Palestinians. Even though Eliran was once a soldier, he and I are now OneVoice youth leaders. We were in the United States to garner support for the silent majorities of our people who believe in the two-state solution and a nonviolent end to the conflict. I took refuge in the fact that we shared this one common goal.

I felt really positive about my role on the tour, especially after the one event, when I was invited to speak with a chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine. It shocked me to learn that there was strong polarization between Palestinian and Jewish groups even on American college campuses. I told them that as a Palestinian, I was very proud and thankful for their efforts in spreading awareness. I also stressed the importance of having a partner to talk to on the other side and asked them to begin a dialogue with the Jewish groups. Not everyone was happy to hear my plea for cooperation, but in the end, they decided to have an internal meeting within their group to decide how to proceed.  I hope that hearing what I had to say made a difference and I hope I can continue to work with them from home.

Our last event of the tour took place at a synagogue. It was the first time I had ever been inside of one. As Eliran and I spoke about our lives throughout the conflict, some of the people in attendance started to cry. You could tell that they cared deeply for us and what we were talking about.  After I spoke, many expressed their love for the Palestinian people, asked how they could help with the movement.  It was a very special moment for me, and I couldn’t wait to tell my family about the overwhelming support I had received on their behalf.

I returned home to the West Bank with a new impression of the American public, and I now have a better understanding of the strong support we have from them.  Sharing my personal story reinforced my desire for a better future and gave me more ideas about to achieve it. I want to get much more involved with the Imagine 2018 campaign in Palestine, and am excited for all the possibilities ahead as I continue to work toward a two state solution with OneVoice.

* Mohammad Asideh is president of OneVoice Palestine's Youth Council and a senior youth leader. He recently participated in a OneVoice International Education Program 10-day tour speaking tour of Colorado and Southern California, at several academic and social institutions.

The IEP incorporates Imagine 2018 into San Diego events

Left to right: Eliran Eyal, Mohammad Asideh, and IEP Manager Rachel Steinberg standing in front of students from UCSD.

New York, November 10, 2010–Israeli and Palestinian youth leaders, Eliran Eyal and Mohammad Asideh brought the Image 2018 campaign to the forefront of International Education Program (IEP) tour events in San Diego, on Tuesday and Wednesday. The two continued to represent the moderate majority and inspired many at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) and San Diego State University (SDSU) campuses.

Both Eliran and Mohammad felt that events in San Diego had brought forth the most constructive dialogue of the tour so far.  Dr. Oren Meyers, a visiting Israeli professor, and Dr. Farid Abdel-Nour, a Palestinian professor, were both in attendance at the SDSU event and made brief remarks.  Professor Abdel-Nour was particularly impressed with the Imagine 2018 campaign because he believes it addresses a reoccurring issue.

“Are people agreeing to just have an idea that there be two states, or are people agreeing about the very clear vision of what it means to speak of two states?” He asked and then continued, “It seems to me that the OneVoice movement has that under control. I assume that you’re talking it out, and that’s honest.”

For this first time in the history of the IEP tour, those in attendance had been asked to brainstorm ideas about they can do to amplify the voice of the Imagine 2018 campaign on within their own communities. OneVoice has been asking people around the world to share how they envision Israel and Palestine in the year 2018 if there were to be a peace agreement, versus maintaining the toxic status quo.

Students at both UCSD and SDSU pitched several great ideas, including the construction of a community garden to promote a healthy tomorrow, the planting of olive trees, a storied symbol of the Middle East, on campuses, an Israeli and Palestinian cultural festival, and an interactive mural depicting an end to the conflict.

“The most fascinating aspect of the event was hearing the individual stories from the Israeli youth leader [Eliran Eyal] and the Palestinian youth leader [Mohammad Asideh],” said Melissa Etehad, founder of the Jewish Students Taking Action for Peace group that had sponsored the UCSD event.  “I felt that they had such amazing stories and experiences and that this was a great opportunity for them to let people know about what life is really like in Israel and the West Bank. This was such a rare opportunity to hear firsthand from Israelis and Palestinians about the conflict, and let alone be in the same room together. Most importantly, however, is the fact that this event set a positive, inspiring tone that left an impression on people who attended that they can make a difference in pursuing a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict rather than following the trend of falling into the common polarized spectrum especially on college campus.”

The greatest strength of OneVoice's IEP tour is its ability to bring people of dissenting opinions together. This resonates through our diverse audience at events who, while they may not always agree on the issues, will gather to participate in a conversation about the future.

OneVoice Europe screens short films at UK Jewish Film Festival

London, November 9, 2010–OneVoice hosted its first ever screening at the 7^th annual UK Jewish Film Festival (UKJFF) in Kilburn, England, on Wednesday. The special evening was held to promote the upcoming launch of the Imagine 2018 campaign.

Close to 100 people filled the seats to screen “Solider and Boy,” directed by Eran Riklis, and “Tel Aviv–Damascus Express,” directed by Rami Blair. Both short films had been adapted from the winning essays of a children’s writing contest held by OneVoice. Daniel Lubetzky, founder and president of OneVoice, was present for the premiere.

“I am delighted to witness first hand the amount of outreach OneVoice is doing in Europe,” said Lubetzky. “From the concept of the 2018 campaign to the delivery of this screening, thousands of people have been affected, and the finished product allows those outside the region to hear what the moderates are saying within it. This event is a remarkable testament to the innovative ways that OneVoice conducts its outreach.”

In 2008, working in conjunction with the Palestinian and Israeli ministries of education, OneVoice launched an essay contest in classrooms throughout Israel and the West Bank, asking children aged 13 to 17 to visualize what the region would look like in 10 years if a peace agreement were to be signed today.  Of the approximate 2,500 submissions, “Soldier and Boy,” by Shay Noilander, and “Tel Aviv–Damascus Express,” by Nadav Kugan and Chen Asulin, were the contest winners. 

Besides the short films, audience members also watched select visions collected by OneVoice Israel and OneVoice Palestine as a part of the Imagine 2018 campaign. OneVoice has been asking people around the world to share how they would envision Israel and Palestine in the year 2018 if there were to be a peace agreement, versus maintaining the toxic status quo.

The evening was hailed a success as many members of the audience took the opportunity to contribute to OneVoice’s growing 2018 campaign. OneVoice will shortly be launching an Imagine 2018 micro-site allowing people to become personally involved by seamlessly sharing their own visions.  If you would like to submit material now, please follow these instructions.

The evening concluded with a “Q+A” session with Martin Bright, founder and chief executive of New Deal of the Mind, and Joel Braunold, director of external relations for OneVoice Europe. Audience questions ranged widely from how the films were selected, to the role of religion in the region and conflict.

Braunold felt that, “For the audience to be in conversation with Martin Bright, an award-winning political journalist and innovative thinker, allowed them to gain a fresh perspective on how creative industry can be utilized in conflict resolution.”

The UKJFF is a major exhibitor of Jewish films in the United Kingdom and Europe. The festival was established in 2003 in order to reach out to a diverse audience interested in exploring Jewish history, life, and culture worldwide.

Eliran and Mohammad engage over 170 university students in Denver

Mohammad Asideh (back left) and Eliran Eyal (back right) talking to an "Islam, Politics, and Culture" class at the University of Colorado at Denver.

New York, November 8, 2010–OneVoice Israel (OVI) youth leader Eliran Eyal and OneVoice Palestine (OVP) youth leader Mohammad Asideh informed students about the need for a two-state solution last week as the International Education Program (IEP) concluded the Colorado leg of its tour.

Eliran and Mohammad spoke to over 100 students in several University of Denver (DU) and University of Colorado at Denver (UCD) classes, as well as at an event open to the public.

Two of Professor Amin Kazak’s classes, “Middle East and World Affairs” at DU and “Islam, Politics, and Culture” at UCD were included on the tour.  Professor Kazak, who is Palestinian, expressed the importance of a grassroots presence in the classroom. 

“It’s all about the message,” he said. “The message is about finding an alternative to the conflict, an alternative to the hate, that’s a good message that the students should know about. I wanted the students to get some ideas and learn different perspectives and not just gather information from the classroom or the textbooks. Nonprofits and community organizations who are involved in such an issue play a vital role in this regard.”

A student from Professor Kazak’s “Islam, Politics, and Culture” class asked Mohammad and Eliran how, in the name of peace and betterment for the next generation, extremists on both sides affect their work at OneVoice.   

“First of all, peace for me is not the number one priority; Peace is good and will come later," replied Mohammad. "I don’t want peace without having a state. OneVoice believes that bringing a two-state solution will bring peace, and this is what we’re trying to project. I don’t like to throw around the word ‘extremists.’ To me an extremist uses violence against civilians and that is a very small percentage of both peoples.  The media exploits their actions. What we are trying to do is amplify the majority who believe in peace.”

Commenting on his own interactions with Israeli extremists, Eliran added, “The conflict is a personal issue to many people. There are varying degrees of extremists. Some people are not extremists at all, but simply need to release their pent up frustration, like hot air coming out of the balloon. People have suffered for a long, long time and they’ve had enough. When I encounter extremists, I listen to them as they explain their position, but I also guide the conversation to a more rational point by repeatedly asking them what they see happening after their proposed actions have occured. Eventually, they come to realize that peace is the only sustainable future.”

On Thursday’s event open to the public, the theme of working toward a peaceful future took hold through a question posed to Eliran and Mohammad about what inspires them to continue to work toward peace in the region. Eliran received a round of applause as he cited “the guy standing next to me” as his motivation. Mohammad took the moment to mention his three-year-old brother and vowed “to do whatever it takes to make sure that he will get better opportunities than what I had.” 

Mohammad Asideh (center) sharing his vision of 2018 at an event open to the public on the University of Denver campus. 

Catch Eliran and Mohammad this week as they bring their message of an end to the conflict to these universities and institutions around southern California:

University of California, San Diego – November 8, 11:30 am - 1:00 pm (Bear Room, Sungod Lounge) 
San Diego State University – November 8, 6:00-8:00 pm (Hepner Hall 130) 
University of California, Irvine – November 9, Time TBA (Room TBA) 
University of California, Los Angeles – November 10, 6:00-8:00 pm (Dodd 121) 
Santa Monica College – November 11, 11:15 am-12:30 pm (LS 103); 3:00-4:30 pm (Math Complex 11) 
Occidental College – November 11, 7:30-9:00 pm (Fowler 202) 
Leo Baeck Temple – November 12, 6:00 pm (1300 N. Sepulveda Boulevard)

Please contact Rachel Steinberg for more information, and be sure to follow all upcoming IEP events on the OneVoice blog! 

IEP Spotlight: Eliran Eyal finds partners for peace on the Palestinian side

New York, November 4, 2010–The fifth and final International Education Program (IEP) tour of 2011 will commence at the University of Denver in Colorado on Thursday. OneVoice Israel’s (OVI) Eliran Eyal and OneVoice Palestine’s (OVP) Mohammad Asideh will take to the stage as the tour’s keynote youth leaders. The two stopped by OneVoice’s office in New York to introduce themselves.

Eliran Eyal, 29, is a professional stage actor, writer, and theater production manager who stumbled upon OVI by chance. On the suggestion of a friend, Eliran attended a town hall meeting (THM) to conduct research for a play he was writing about the consequences of war on an Israeli solider.  From there, it was only a matter of time until the Beit Zvi acting school graduate and Ramat Gan native became a full fledged youth leader.

You’ll find your mood synchronously improve as a conversation with Eliran progresses. His animated personality is what you would expect from someone entrenched in Tel Aviv’s theater world. The evolvement of Israel’s cultural scene is what drives Eliran to work toward an end to the conflict. His philosophy, simply put, is that the establishment of an independent Palestinian state equals a more secure Israel, requiring less money toward its defense and security, and more toward civic and social development.

Eliran joined OVI after learning the results of a OneVoice sponsored poll about the desire of peace amongst the general Israeli and Palestinian populations. “I was shocked to learn that nearly three quarters of Palestinians wanted peace, and I felt like up until then I had been living a lie.  From what I had heard in the media my whole life, I thought that the majority of Palestinians wanted to destroy the Jewish people.  Being at the THM was the first time in my life that I understood we had a partner on the other side,” he said.

Like most Israelis, Eliran grew up with the understanding that he was without a partner in peace.  He cites, among his childhood memories, learning the quickest way to put on a gasmask, and long nights watching television from the confines of a bomb shelter during the first and second intifadas [uprisings].  The conflict, in effect, had robbed him of his youth.

“For Purim one year, I remember dressing up as The Kurgan from the movie Highlander,” he recalls. “I was wearing full leather and had shaved my head so that my friend could draw this really cool dragon on the side.  It looked awesome. I was so excited to go out and show it off until it was reported on the news that a suicide bomber had just killed himself and others in Tel Aviv.  I went in the bathroom to clean my face, suddenly feeling so naïve and stupid.  I thought, ‘how could I dare choose to go out and have fun with my friends when there are people whose families had just been destroyed?’”

This experience is similar to one Eliran had the day Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated on November 4, 1995. Today marks the 15 year anniversary of his death.

“Rabin’s assassination is something that I think I will never forget. My family and I were together in a large banquet hall celebrating my cousin’s bat mitzvah when it happened.  For the most part everyone was dancing and having a good time.  When it was first announced that he had been shot, some of the men went to watch what was happening on a TV in a backroom.  When it was finally revealed that he died, the mood quickly turned somber and everyone left the party.  I remember feeling bad for not crying despite seeing the tears of everyone around me.  I didn’t understand the gravity of the situation at the time. Despite Yasser Arafat’s condemnation of the tragedy, I felt angry toward Arabs broadcast on the news who were celebrating his death. That instance was an example of the media using its power to deepen the divide, rather than working to unify people.”

One of the things that most impressed Eliran about OVI is its subversion to the common media tactic of fear mongering. As one of OVI’s most enthusiastic youth leaders, Eliran works hard in his community to facilitate the flow of open dialogue between Israelis and Palestinians. “I know my audience now,” he says. “Both Israelis and Palestinians wants an agreement that will ensure they live next to each other.”

Catch Eliran and Mohammad on tour this November, as they bring their message of an end to the conflict at these universities and institutions around Southern California: 

University of California, San Diego – November 8, 11:30 am - 1:00 pm (Bear Room, Sungod Lounge)
San Diego State University – November 8, 6:00-8:00 pm (Hepner Hall 130)
University of California, Irvine – November 9, Time TBA (Room TBA)
University of California, Los Angeles – November 10, 6:00-8:00 pm (Dodd 121)
Santa Monica College – November 11, 11:15 am-12:30 pm (LS 103); 3:00-4:30 pm (Math Complex 11)
Occidental College – November 11, 7:30-9:00 pm (Fowler 202)
Leo Baeck Temple – November 12, 6:00 pm (1300 N. Sepulveda Boulevard)

Please contact Rachel Steinberg for more information, and be sure to follow all upcoming IEP events on the OneVoice blog!