Winter/Spring 2004
The Power of We
Rami Elhannan’s father settled in Israel after surviving Auschwitz. On his mother’s side, he is the 8th generation to call Jerusalem home. On Sept. 9, 1997, Rami’s 14 year old daughter was shopping for text books with her classmate on the first day of school, when two suicide bombers blew themselves up on a Jerusalem street, killing the two girls. After a year of struggling with anger and hopelessness, Rami, along with his wife, joined Bereaved Families Supporting Reconciliation and Peace, a group of Israeli and Palestinian families who have each lost loved ones to the conflict. His life has taken on new meaning as he works
collaboratively to end the occupation and stop the violence.
Khalil Bashir, a Palestinian school headmaster, lives with his wife, mother and children in the house where he grew up in the Gaza strip. After Russian immigrants moved into a new Jewish settlement near his land, the Israeli army, citing security reasons, destroyed his groves of orange, olive, and palm trees, and two and a half acres of greenhouses. For four months they shelled Khalil’s house wounding him and his son. Unsuccessful at running the family off their land, the Israeli army moved into the 2nd and 3rd floors of the Bashir house two years ago. The family continues to sleep in one first floor room. Despite this unimaginable situation, Khalil teaches non-violence and peaceful coexistence to his children and students, attempts to communicate with the settlers as neighbors, and treats the Israeli soldiers occupying his home with respect and civility.
When meeting Rami and Khalil on a trip to Israel and the Palestinian Territories last fall, I marvelled at how, after so much loss and suffering, they could respond to violence with love and forgiveness, rather than hatred and revenge. It seems to come from a deeply held belief that the world is not divided into “us and them.” There is only “We,” and with this understanding comes the power to triumph over tragedy and despair.
The wall being built by the Sharon government in the West Bank separates the Palestinian and Israeli people, as well as many Palestinians from their fields, jobs, schools and communities. During our visit, our delegation of eight women was invited to join a protest at the separation wall organized by Israeli, Palestinian and
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Judy at a women’s peace march against the separation wall in the West Bank, drawing over 250 Israeli women on the Israeli side of the wall and 200 Palestinian and internationals on the west side. |
international women’s peace groups. My arms and head were conspicuously bare amongst hundreds of Muslim women, as I carried a Code Pink: Women for Peace flag toward the separation wall where, through the gate, I could see hundreds of Jewish women marching under the Israeli flag toward the men with guns who stood between us. The Israeli soldiers refused our passage and fired tear gas into the crowd of Palestinian women. Those with children turned back, while the rest of us held our ground. Finally, a small group of Israeli women, with one of our delegation among them, was permitted through the gate. They brought school supplies and gifts to the Palestinians, who are suffering great economic and social hardship because of the wall and the prolonged and brutal military occupation. Despite the history of conflict and fear, the women were joyful in the brief opportunity to reach out to one another with compassion and solidarity.
On February 15, 2003, 25 million people in over 100 countries around the world took to the streets saying no to Bush’s war on Iraq – the largest coordinated peace demonstration in world history. This is truly a day to remember. Rami, Khalil and the women for peace are not alone in their courage and conviction, but part of a growing global consciousness that the world is one people and war is obsolete. As this consciousness grows, it will surely tip the scale toward non-violence and world peace. God is not on one side, as Bush and Sharon would have us believe in their fear-based, good vs. evil, kill-or-be-killed worldview. The Divine is present in all people, and it is through love and understanding that we reach that peaceful place of interconnectedness in each of us. It’s the power of “We,” not the battle of “us against them,” that will secure lasting peace and true democracy for all people.
