< Reflection One: The Power Imbalance is Palpable >
2015 Olive Harvest Delegation to Palestine/Israel Co-Sponsored with American Jews for a Just Peace/Jewish Voice
for Peace Boston's Heath and Human Rights Project
Read reflections from this delegation:
- Olive Harvest Delegation Home
- The Power Imbalance is Palpable
- Share Their Story
- This is a Beautiful Land
- So Much I Didn't Know
- From Immersion to Action!
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Overview: This first collection of reflections from the delegation begins with Gary K.'s observations from walking the Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem. Most of the pieces center on the delegation's first day in Jerusalem, including reflections by Barbara B-L, Carolyn K., and Haniel G.; Allie P. and Duncan M. analyse the political situation facing Palestinian residents of Jerusalem; and Sandra Y., Bud H., and Steve L. add more context to the story. This collection wraps up with reflections on the delegation's travel from Washington, DC to Israel by Celeste A., Haniel G., and Dick A.
Two Observations of Jerusalem | Gary K. - Afton, New York
What an eye-opening day in Jerusalem! Two things that really jumped out at me, one theological, one based on the current ways of life here.
On the theological end, walking the Via Dolorosa I was amazed by how active of a marketplace it is (most of it based on tourism). This got me thinking about just how active of a marketplace the city was during the time of Christ... and even though the route that walked today was most likely not the exact route that Jesus walked as he went to the cross, having seen and heard the sights and sounds of the city today (including the stray cats) I have a much less romanticized understanding of how the city probably was during the time of Jesus, especially during the days of the passion narrative.
My second observation is in regards to the obvious oppression that is evident in the city. An example of this can be seen in the water reserve barrels that are visible above the homes of the Palestinians, but are not present on the affluent homes which are primarily owned by the Israeli Jewish settlers in the same neighborhoods.... it gives one reason to pause and reflect...
I Will Listen | Barbara B.-L. - Sebastopol, California
The unthinkable has a face, and a purpose, which somehow makes it less understandable.
Today, after walking the path which Jesus took on his way to being killed, then tucking a paper wish for PEACE into the Western (Wailing) Wall, I listened to lots of particulars about how Israel skillfully, even brilliantly, makes life miserable tor Palestinians.
Israelis make the law. Israelis enforce this law. So, Israel "legally" takes homes or property, destroys Palestinian homes on a legal pretext, and limits education for Palestinian children and medical care for Palestinians.
It seems as if Israel is systematically trying to drive Palestinians out of Jerusalem, where Palestinians have a right, historically and legally, to live and prosper.
At the airport my heart responded as I watched Israeli Jewish families greet their loved-ones, excited children, joyous Moms and Dads. So, for a people who were treated so cruelly to treat others so inhumanely and to politically and morally believe they are "right" is beyond my ability to understand. Maybe, tomorrow, when we hear a person who lives in a Settlement tell her story I will glimpse her truth.
I will listen. I will try.
A Day of Contradictions | Carolyn K. – Orinda, California
Our day was a day of contradictions. We spent the morning following the path of Jesus on his last walk, visiting religious sites -- sites that are sacred to so many religions. What struck me was how not so different it was for us. Truly it is modern times but there were Israeli Border Police, municipal police, and security guards armed with the most updated, modern weapons everywhere we walked. I understand it is for "security" purposes but, being on the ground, belies the need for so much aggression.
The power imbalance is palpable.
This afternoon we spent touring the areas that are being annexed by Israel: lands owned by Palestinian families for generations being taken; Palestinian villages separated from their working land where they must obtain permission and permits to enter and leave; Palestinian houses destroyed by the Israeli army; a "security fence" that is a wall; and houses owned by Palestinians that have been forced out now being occupied by Israelis.
I am overwhelmed with the unfairness, the injustice, the psychological torture, the human cruelty and normalization of said cruelty.
Think about it ... How would we feel if Canada or Mexico decided they wanted more land and just moved in, moving the border farther and farther until we were forced out? In my mind, there is absolutely no justification for such cruelty and violation of human rights; there is absolutely no rationale for a victimized, oppressed people to turn the tables and become the oppressor.
It is a culture being erased.
Black Water Tanks | Haniel G. – Washington, DC
Today I learned another way to spot a Palestinian home. It has one or two black water tanks on its roof.
We can skip the color. Just the fact that such homes have tanks while Israeli homes don't already speaks of a double standard. The water tank has become a necessity, as Palestinian homes often get irregular water service. Israeli homes of course don't have such an experience.
The withholding of water service is tantamount to a siege. Poor water service is one way that makes a Palestinian household's life miserable. The tanks provide reserve water to tide the household over till water from the faucet flows, or made to flow, again.
Is the reserve supply enough to withstand the siege? It's one of those things Palestinians are made to go through to exasperate them and make them think of moving to another place. That sets the stage for an Israeli takeover of the abandoned home and voila, another home for an Israeli settler in illegally occupied Palestinian territory.
By the way, has anyone heard of being driven from one's land by forcing that person to build a house illegally? Well, illegal based on the Israeli government's own framework of course.
To make the humiliation complete, the one who built the house is made to choose to demolish the house him/herself or let the government do it and pay a stiff fee. If one chooses the latter, the time and date of demolition is set arbitrarily, and if the demolition team comes it does so without prior notice on unholy hours (say 5:00 am) and gives the household 15 minutes or so to vacate.
Rendering Palestine Invisible | Allie P. - New Haven, Connecticut
On our flight to Tel Aviv, two flight attendants gushed with excitement about Israel. It’s an “incredible country, incredible,” one said; “spine-tingling,” said another. Surely neither one had seen there the Palestine that we would be seeing, I thought. Their comments reminded me that a close friend’s young adult son, traveling to Israel on a Birthright (all expenses paid) trip, never saw the wall. Not by accident.
In so many ways, Palestine, its history and culture has been and continues to be erased. During our tour of the Old City of Jerusalem, Said, our wonderful, incredibly knowledgeable Palestinian guide, pointed to street signs in Arabic, Hebrew, and English. Completely lost in the Hebrew “translation” was the original Arabic name; it had been changed, effectively erased. Language is powerful, a tool for control.
Not invisible for those who have eyes to see and guides to direct their attention, as Said had done with the street signs, was evidence of Israel’s domination and cruel, Kafka-esque control, as Fayrouz Sharqawi of Grassroots Al Quds toured us through East Jerusalem: the rubble of a Palestinian home, one of over 2,000 demolished just in East Jerusalem; and of course the 24 foot concrete wall at Abu Dis, completely blocking the road to Jericho, deliberately placed to leave 100,000 Palestinians outside the wall, no longer with direct access to their city (“We don’t need these neighborhoods,” the Mayor of Jerusalem has said). Effectively an “erasure” of Palestinian population.
Today we head to Jenin in the West Bank for the Olive Harvest. Zionists refer to this region with the Biblical names of Judea and Samaria. That’s yet another effort at erasure, as they refuse to use its name of Palestine.
“Legal Ethnic Cleansing” | Duncan M. - West Newton, Massachusetts
Today I learned a lot about what might be called "legal ethnic cleansing.'' Israel wants to reduce the number of Palestinians who live in East Jerusalem and has created a whole web of subtle legal devices to accomplish this.
The "center of life" law means that Palestinians must document that they continually live and work in the city. If they take a job in another town, they can lose their residency permit even if they own their house. This can happen by a midnight IDF raid on their home to check up on who is there. Someone who leaves Palestine for an extended period to work or study must return periodically or lose residency.
The absentee property law means the state can take ownership of property if the owners aren't present to claim it -- even though the owner may be a Palestinian not allowed in Jerusalem. The Israeli government has seized Palestinian land to build a national park, which years later became the site of an Israeli settlement.
Palestinian families who need a larger house and build an addition can have their home demolished if they do not have a building permit, which are almost impossible to get.
Denial of education to children by lack of classroom facilities, or lack of social services can force people to leave, as can the rising cost of living.
Construction of the separation wall is a tactic to divide Palestinian communities and even wall them off from the city where they have residency, while taking their land.
The Israeli plan to take over East Jerusalem is clear in that they are slowly renaming the streets to Hebrew names. All of this is legal according to Israeli law, but covert and so easier to get away with.
Myth and Reality | Sandra Y. - Durham, New Hampshire
What is myth and what is reality? In Jerusalem, what seems right, moral, and humane is made illegal by Israeli laws as applied to non-Jews (i.e. Palestinians). If you want to build a house and do not get one of the rarely issued permits you might take the chance and build anyway. Then the Israeli government will inform you that you must tear it down or they will, with a 15-minute warning at 6 in the morning.
How can this be? Palestinian residents of Jerusalem are not citizens of Israel even if they were born there. They have "resident status" only. Furthermore, if Israeli soldiers raid your home at 2pm to make sure the city is your "center of life" and there is not fresh food in your refrigerator you are no longer allowed to live in Jerusalem. It's the law.
But, why? Facts on the ground, perhaps?
When there ever is a solution to the colonization and resistance in this area and no Palestinian live in Jerusalem, will the UN still say the city of Jerusalem should be an international city and capital for both Israel and Palestine? What will that reality be?
A Palestinian's Lament | Bud H. - Arlington, Virginia
Israel keeps pushing us out... from our homes, from our land. In 1967 they annexed East Jerusalem, my hometown, where my family has lived for over two hundred years. My parents were stripped of citizenship and made "residents" who have to renew their "residency" every year. Jews became citizens automatically and started taking our homes.
My uncle next door could never get a permit to add a room for his son's new family, so he did the addition on his own. Israel condemned his house and tore it down. My uncle and his entire family had to leave for the West Bank and lose even their residency. From citizen homeowner and businessman to nothing in just forty years.
Now I will have an apartment for Jewish settlers next door. I can't leave my home for a week's vacation. If Israel finds it empty they will claim it "vacant" and confiscate it for settlers. All against international law. But no one steps in to help.
The United States actually gives blind support to this apartheid state and seems proud of it.
The Most Moral Army in The World | Steve L. - Lincoln, Massachusetts
We arrived in Israel last Sunday (a week before the rest of the Interfaith Peace-Builders delegation). Zipped quickly through immigration and are staying in the Muslim Quarter, which is peaceful, but seems considerably quieter than usual.
Israeli Border Police and municipal police are scattered about the Old City and East Jerusalem in large clusters. Badly groomed, looking slovenly in their uniforms, almost every one of these kids looks like the kind of punk you'd hope neither your daughter nor your son would ever meet. Simply standing around, often with their backs to the public, and making eye contact with virtually no one, they spend their time playing with their phones, sometimes their machine guns, and smoking. Almost every one of these kids presents the appearance and body language of complete boredom.
“The most moral army in the world” looks more like a bunch of schlemiels with no concern about the image they project and even less concern that their commanders might have higher standards for presenting a professional image. Frankly, the only way they earn their respect and authority is through automatic weapons they carry, with index fingers placed no more than 2 centimeters away from the triggers.
Individuals Can Also Change History | Celeste A. - Carmel, California
As we left JFK headed to Tel Aviv, I finally found the mental presence to read Dexter Filkin's latest New Yorker article. He ends this excellent piece by countering Tolstoy's statement that "history is not made by individuals, but rather is the continuously unfolding consequences of innumerable interconnected events."
Filkin's firmly believes, given Yitzhak Rabin and Yigal Amer's story, that individuals *do* matter.
I think both gentlemen's points are valid as we embark on our journey to Israel/Palestine. On board the plane, I happened to sit next to two random people who represent an unfolding scenario that continues to affect the course of history. An older American woman sitting next to me was joining her husband to visit their oldest son who has worked for two decades in Jerusalem helping Palestinian and Syrian refugee children with certain medical problems. We chatted about that important work and about her daughter-in-law's teaching at the relatively new school close to Amman, Jordan. Having friends who've taught there, I know a little about its origin and purpose. We then started talking about our trips: she asked if this were my first trip to Jerusalem, to which I replied in the affirmative. I asked if she'd been to Petra, since she'll be in Amman for a few days, because it was such a spectacular area to explore. She said she had already been but was surprised that I had never visited Jerusalem since I had been in Jordan.
Our conversation ended abruptly when an older Israeli from New York joined our threesome on the other aisle and began a long, involved conversation with her. He said he could tell the kind of person she was just by looking at her or perhaps there was some coded phrase that he used to discover their like-mindness. I'm not sure. However, he immediately delved into the state of terrorism throughout Palestine. He blanched when she told him about her sons medical work and said something to the effect that he should never cure these children because they'd just grow up to be terrorists. He further expounded upon the state of the greater Middle East and North Africa with particular venom directed toward the "crazy terrorists" in Syria. "They should all be taken out," he continued. "They're no good for the prosperity of Israel."
And that was his entire focus: the welfare of his adopted Israel. The woman seemed to agree with each and every invective coming from his mouth as she keep referring to the small New Testament she had in her lap.
While I had a reprieve from the majority if the conversation after the plane settled in for the 10-hour flight, they both roused during the final hour to continue their overview of the world order from a Zionist, Republican and extreme Christian perspective. They ran through how the 2016 presidential election will benefit their causes: almost any Republican candidate would be preferable to Hillary or Bernie. The older woman spoke up more at this time parroting what he kept insisting as the GOP ability - with almost any candidate - to protect Israel and the US from what they both feared as the growing Islamic threat.
He continually asserted that his adopted country Israel had tried to contain the Arabs and would need to continue to do so in any way possible. His and his children’s and grandchildren's ways of life was threatened by all the Islamic forces, a concern the woman readily agreed to as she was preparing to join her husband for several days of reflection in the Holy Land and enjoyment at rejoining some of her growing family in Jerusalem.
My eyes were opened by their rabid version of a situation I've followed for years - a version that carries serious implications for the future. These two people who met randomly perpetuate a narrative that will affect the course of history. It is my purpose on this trip to Jerusalem to follow Filkin's conviction that individuals can also change history: one related story after another.
When the Dust Settles | Haniel G. – Washington, DC
It was already dark when we arrived at Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion airport. It was enveloped by a thick blanket of dust. Our group is an interfaith group made up mostly of Christians and Jews. Because of the increased tension in Israel-Palestine, with violent occurrences being reported daily, we prepared for potential snags that might arise due to expected heightened security. Happily, those snags never materialized and members of the group complained particularly during our entry at the airport, more of not being able to sleep on the plane and my own greatest anxiety was of hot coffee spilling into my shirt as the plane went through turbulence as we were flying above the Greek islands.
The immigration never asked me hard questions and it took only about a minute before I was handed a visa. I had wondered if I'd be subjected to some kind of grilling considering that I was the only one in our group that did not have a US passport. The trip is just starting, however, and we'd be seeing more and listening to stories from people who find themselves in the midst of conflict that is nowhere near any resolution, much less a just one. But let's see. Who knows, the dust may yet settle, for good.
First Experiences | Dick A. – Portland, Oregon
My first experiences with Israel took place before the Interfaith Peace-Builders delegation left Washington, DC. On the bus to the airport, we drove by Washington's Holocaust Museum, which has on its wall, in large letters, "Never Again." Never again will Jews be vulnerable to forces bent on their annihilation.
Given our delegation's focus, I saw these words in a slightly new way. With Israel's creation narrative positing Palestinian Arabs as implacable enemies, "Never Again" must mean to Israel no accommodation, no trust, no possibility of trust.
A second experience of Israel took place for me at our departure gate at JFK airport in New York City. There was not a single Palestinian Arab among the 300 of us on our way to Israel. It was a flight of Jews and foreign tourists going to a "Jewish land." It was very clear that no Arab need apply, no Arab may appear.
So well l before arriving at Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion International airport, I felt that I'd experienced something very important about Israel. In the next few days, I'll see how these understandings hold up.
We invite delegation participants to comment on and react to the experiences they have during our Israel/Palestine delegations in written Trip Reflections.
Individual delegates contribute pieces to these reflections. As such, reflections are not comprehensive accounts of every meeting or experience, but impressions of those things that most impact individuals. Submitted reflections may be edited for clarity or brevity. Trip reports do not necessarily reflect the views of Interfaith Peace-Builders, trip leaders, or delegation partner organizations. We hope you enjoy reading and we encourage you to share these reflections with others.
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