I think they should remove the camps and have the Israelis and Palestinians be friends. If that could happen, the Palestinians will know Israelis. They should share the land, but if it gets chaotic one of them would leave. Palestinians should have the West Bank, and the Israelis should have the Gaza Strip. They should give money to Israelis and Palestinians that have gotten hurt or wounded from war. They should also give money to Palestinians to make houses. Israelis should give back land they aren't using and have Palestinians make houses. I liked learning about about the Middle East and the different cultures. I thought it was complicated at first, but then I got it. I'm glad that I learned about this. It makes me think what bad stuff is happening around the world and what we can do to fix it.
Friday, March 14, 2014
Bryan's Final Thoughts on Peace Summit
I think they should remove the camps and have the Israelis and Palestinians be friends. If that could happen, the Palestinians will know Israelis. They should share the land, but if it gets chaotic one of them would leave. Palestinians should have the West Bank, and the Israelis should have the Gaza Strip. They should give money to Israelis and Palestinians that have gotten hurt or wounded from war. They should also give money to Palestinians to make houses. Israelis should give back land they aren't using and have Palestinians make houses. I liked learning about about the Middle East and the different cultures. I thought it was complicated at first, but then I got it. I'm glad that I learned about this. It makes me think what bad stuff is happening around the world and what we can do to fix it.
Li's Final Thoughts on Peace Summit
This conflict has gone on for too long. It has been over 80 years, and I understand why, but come on— make up already. Many of our peace plans I agree with, but some I do not. I think Palestinians should get the rights that Israelis have. They should also get rid of all those checkpoints or at least let them come through faster. I also think that the Jews should be able to search them in fear of a bomb. They should really have Jewish kids and Arab kids meet so that they would get to understand each other and so that then they can get their parents to change. The West Bank and the Gaza Strip should be Arab because they need a home and their own country. The Arabs also need to stop attacking the Israelis. This is what I think of the situation.
Catie's Final Thoughts on Peace Summit
I think that some of the agreements in class could be implemented, but also a lot couldn't. Like the proposal for the borders of Gaza and the West Bank to be dissolved and for the people to become one Israeli state. I do not think it will be possible for this to happen because I think Palestinians want a separate state, and this would arise conflict for both sides. However, I think one that could be implemented was the one that would give the Palestinians 1/4 of the aid from the U.S. for humanitarian reasons. I think this would work because it might bring down the tension between the two sides. I think the proposal to have the Palestinians to be able to visit their holy sites is fair and could be accomplished. In the movie Promises some of the Palestinian kids were talking about how they could not visit their holy sites. I think if the West Bank and Gaza were given to Palestinians and all the settlers got out, there could be an everlasting peace.
Olivia's Final Thoughts on Peace Summit
The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has been going for too long. I have not experienced what a lot of the Israelis and Palestinians have, but I have experienced fear. The hatred between Israel and Palestine is so deeply rooted and powered by the thing that controls us. Fear. Fear that another barrier will be put up, fear that another house will be bulldozed in the West Bank, fear that someone on the other side, your age, feels like it would be better if you ceased to exist.
The fear that peace will never be found and war will be infinite.
Peace can not happen instantaneously, not like the way most think it should happen. Getting rid of the checkpoints and barriers instantly might do nothing but foster a more open invitation to violence between the countries. Peace can not happen without Israel and Palestine's consent. In this type of conflict, making peace would be a slower, gradual process. People are already starting to work on that.The Hand in Hand Schools invite children to come and learn with other children of all ethnicities and religions. They learn together, grow up together, and become friends, as everyone should be. The solution to this sort of conflict does not involve instantly removing the "security fence" and barriers. Barriers, seen and unseen, need to be broken down and removed piece by piece.
The first step would be breaking down the barriers that are unseen, and bringing people together. The mind is a lot like a checkpoint. You can go ahead, straight on through, or the conflict can hold you back, for the Israelis as much as the Palestinians.
The second step would be breaking down seen barriers piece by piece, and seeing how the two cultures learn from one another.
The last step would be never giving up. I believe god created this conflict to see if man was brave enough to push through and find peace. Peace will only be established when both Israel and Palestine are brave enough to unite and stand together as one.
The fear that peace will never be found and war will be infinite.
Peace can not happen instantaneously, not like the way most think it should happen. Getting rid of the checkpoints and barriers instantly might do nothing but foster a more open invitation to violence between the countries. Peace can not happen without Israel and Palestine's consent. In this type of conflict, making peace would be a slower, gradual process. People are already starting to work on that.The Hand in Hand Schools invite children to come and learn with other children of all ethnicities and religions. They learn together, grow up together, and become friends, as everyone should be. The solution to this sort of conflict does not involve instantly removing the "security fence" and barriers. Barriers, seen and unseen, need to be broken down and removed piece by piece.
The first step would be breaking down the barriers that are unseen, and bringing people together. The mind is a lot like a checkpoint. You can go ahead, straight on through, or the conflict can hold you back, for the Israelis as much as the Palestinians.
The second step would be breaking down seen barriers piece by piece, and seeing how the two cultures learn from one another.
The last step would be never giving up. I believe god created this conflict to see if man was brave enough to push through and find peace. Peace will only be established when both Israel and Palestine are brave enough to unite and stand together as one.
Sophie's Final Thoughts on Peace Summit
This unit, the sixth grade has spent an extensive amount of time studying the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. I was in the expert group, so I read the book Understanding the Holy Land. In addition, I read Habibi, talked with Harris Zafar and Lee Gordon, made poster boards, watched the Promises, and a chapter of a book, called Three Wishes, which was similar in theme to the movie. It's been incredible learning all about the conflict and both points of view.
Both have valid opinions to uphold, although I do not understand the Israelis as much because one of their main reasons for their right to the land is religion. Being non-religious, I do not quite have the feeling of understanding towards it. That takes away one of their major points, but also some of the Palestinian's points. In class, however, I had to argue with others from the point of view of Moishe, a highly religious Israeli child in the Promises movie. It was hard arguing for something I don't fully understand. I do, however, understand that if you are an Israeli, surrounding you and most likely in your family are survivors of the Holocaust. Israelis hear every day from their community members about the suffering that they endured and how it must never happen again. This plagues their hearts with fear, and that is why every Israeli citizen, girl or boy, except for the rabbis, must serve in the army. I think that the Israeli army takes out their fear of another Holocaust or terrorist action on the Palestinians.
A highly racist thing is to classify Arabs as terrorists. The term is rarely used for someone other than an Arab. True, some Arabs are, in fact, terrorists, although so are others of many other ethnic backgrounds in the world. In fact, anybody that does something to severely harm an innocent or non-fighting person is a terrorist. The Israelis are calling the whole nation of Palestine terrorists. Now, if this accusation were to be accurate, then a few bombings a year from the Palestinians make them terrorists. In this world, almost every country is a terrorist. The United States of America has dropped a bomb on a wedding of innocent Pakistanis, wanting to be happy and start a family. Thinking the wedding group was Al Qaeda, the US bombed them with a drone. There goes a family. There are mad people everywhere, and they're part of our society. People do have things that will make their anger rise, such as getting kicked out of their beloved homes, being shot at, having curfews, having loved ones dying when it could have gone differently or been prevented. Some of these things are happening to both nation's peoples. Anger + anger usually = war. Intifadas have been happening for many years. With the military aid of the US, Israeli soldiers shoot at Palestinians, and they retaliate by throwing stones. I think that the US should not spend huge amounts of money for military that could be given to take care of all Americans, like free health care. Instead, we give the money to Israeli soldiers, which is resulting in death of innocent people, sometimes. If we have to give aid to the Middle East, we should give it to all the wounded, Israeli and Palestinian.
It starts with the next generation. Conflict is still happening, but this could still change, with hope, and children. Children are the next generation. They're not the ones firing at each other. With Hand In Hand Schools, it gives Palestinian and Israeli kids ways to connect and become friends and just know each other. Some have been living just minutes away from each other in whole different worlds with no idea of the others' existence. When the next generation grows up, Israelis in the army would think, Wait a minute, I'm being told to shoot, but that's my childhood best friend's village! I don't want to shoot them! And Palestinian adults would think, Wait a minute, I won't let my son go on a suicide mission or throw rocks at Jerusalem—my childhood best friend lives there! I don't want them to be hurt!
Perhaps one day, there could be peace and harmony throughout these lands in the Middle East, and refugees could move back to the lands they once lived on, that they have the key for, and the land deeds too. They could accept each other for who they are and what they believe in. This is my hope, for children will make the change we're all hoping to see come out of this terrible situation,
Both have valid opinions to uphold, although I do not understand the Israelis as much because one of their main reasons for their right to the land is religion. Being non-religious, I do not quite have the feeling of understanding towards it. That takes away one of their major points, but also some of the Palestinian's points. In class, however, I had to argue with others from the point of view of Moishe, a highly religious Israeli child in the Promises movie. It was hard arguing for something I don't fully understand. I do, however, understand that if you are an Israeli, surrounding you and most likely in your family are survivors of the Holocaust. Israelis hear every day from their community members about the suffering that they endured and how it must never happen again. This plagues their hearts with fear, and that is why every Israeli citizen, girl or boy, except for the rabbis, must serve in the army. I think that the Israeli army takes out their fear of another Holocaust or terrorist action on the Palestinians.
A highly racist thing is to classify Arabs as terrorists. The term is rarely used for someone other than an Arab. True, some Arabs are, in fact, terrorists, although so are others of many other ethnic backgrounds in the world. In fact, anybody that does something to severely harm an innocent or non-fighting person is a terrorist. The Israelis are calling the whole nation of Palestine terrorists. Now, if this accusation were to be accurate, then a few bombings a year from the Palestinians make them terrorists. In this world, almost every country is a terrorist. The United States of America has dropped a bomb on a wedding of innocent Pakistanis, wanting to be happy and start a family. Thinking the wedding group was Al Qaeda, the US bombed them with a drone. There goes a family. There are mad people everywhere, and they're part of our society. People do have things that will make their anger rise, such as getting kicked out of their beloved homes, being shot at, having curfews, having loved ones dying when it could have gone differently or been prevented. Some of these things are happening to both nation's peoples. Anger + anger usually = war. Intifadas have been happening for many years. With the military aid of the US, Israeli soldiers shoot at Palestinians, and they retaliate by throwing stones. I think that the US should not spend huge amounts of money for military that could be given to take care of all Americans, like free health care. Instead, we give the money to Israeli soldiers, which is resulting in death of innocent people, sometimes. If we have to give aid to the Middle East, we should give it to all the wounded, Israeli and Palestinian.
It starts with the next generation. Conflict is still happening, but this could still change, with hope, and children. Children are the next generation. They're not the ones firing at each other. With Hand In Hand Schools, it gives Palestinian and Israeli kids ways to connect and become friends and just know each other. Some have been living just minutes away from each other in whole different worlds with no idea of the others' existence. When the next generation grows up, Israelis in the army would think, Wait a minute, I'm being told to shoot, but that's my childhood best friend's village! I don't want to shoot them! And Palestinian adults would think, Wait a minute, I won't let my son go on a suicide mission or throw rocks at Jerusalem—my childhood best friend lives there! I don't want them to be hurt!
Perhaps one day, there could be peace and harmony throughout these lands in the Middle East, and refugees could move back to the lands they once lived on, that they have the key for, and the land deeds too. They could accept each other for who they are and what they believe in. This is my hope, for children will make the change we're all hoping to see come out of this terrible situation,
Aarushi's Final Thoughts on Peace Summit
Israel and Palestine have been in a war for nearly a hundred years. Throughout these years, establishing peace between these two sides has been getting harder and harder. Israelis are being terrorized by Palestinian bombings, and the Palestinians have been abused and forced from their land by Israeli military. The thought of peace between these two countries seems impossible, and it would take a very long time for any negotiations to work even after any agreements. A solution that has been successful so far is bringing Arab and Jewish kids together to develop friendships. This works because when kids grow up, they will realize the other side is not their enemy, but their friend. The problem with these schools is that there are not enough kids who are enrolled in them. If most of the Arab and Jewish children went to these schools, when they grow up, they would know more about the other side and be able to negotiate peace.
A-Lo's Final Thoughts on Peace Summit
Understanding the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is a challenge, no doubt, but from all of the research that I have done, I know it is hard for both sides. Children should not have to experience what they are going through now. They should not have to visit a memorial site for their friend or family member who was shot by an Israeli soldier or who was killed by a suicide bomber on a bus. A parent having to see her child shot or a child seeing her parent blown up should never happen.
I think that a good idea to bring peace to the Palestinians and Israelis is to take down the checkpoints. The Israelis should not have to fear that the Palestinians will bomb them, and the Palestinians should not have Israeli soldiers in their land. The Palestinians were given a small piece of land, and it should be all theirs. The Palestinians should get their houses back if they have the deed and key or they should receive money to build a new house. I can't even imagine what it would be like to lose a family member or friend because they threw a rock at a soldier or because they got on the wrong bus at the wrong time. Religion should not be a reason people are forced out of their homes. Religion should not matter to the government.
I think that a good idea to bring peace to the Palestinians and Israelis is to take down the checkpoints. The Israelis should not have to fear that the Palestinians will bomb them, and the Palestinians should not have Israeli soldiers in their land. The Palestinians were given a small piece of land, and it should be all theirs. The Palestinians should get their houses back if they have the deed and key or they should receive money to build a new house. I can't even imagine what it would be like to lose a family member or friend because they threw a rock at a soldier or because they got on the wrong bus at the wrong time. Religion should not be a reason people are forced out of their homes. Religion should not matter to the government.
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