Reading Response for 10/31

    Out of the to reading we are responsible for reading for tomorrow, I found Galit Hasan-Rokem's short essay more thought provoking. While it is somewhat short and abstract, the parallels in which it draws are interesting and revealing to how Jerusalem has been seen throughout history. For the most part, and I'm not saying I'm happy or agree with it, society has been dominated by men. Also throughout history, it has been stereotypical for men to often dominate over women. Assigning a specific sex to Jerusalem is interesting because it provides a human perspective to the situation. To me the comparison makes Jerusalem out to be a beautiful women that many powerful men are trying to obtain- they fight over her, want to be "her master", and "adorn her with pearls of stone and brick". But like most people know, one can't own a person, much like one can't "own" a city. Yet, people have not realized this; Jerusalem, like any other city, doesn't belong to one single person. Instead, it is a group entity that can't be shared and must be seen as a sovereign being. What I feel is the most important aspect of this essay is that because of its beauty, importance, and grandeur, Jerusalem can be easily seen as a "female" figure, but it is in assigning these humanistic qualities that one realizes that Jerusalem is a "thing" that must be shared, not owned.
    The pieces from Ramallah Diaries were also interesting, and one of the most fu readings we have had yet. Reading real life stories as opposed to academic articles was a nice change of pace; it's often times easier to get a more personal tie  with a situation if you read personal stories of those who experience it, it gives you an inside view. The part about gas masks was truly infuriating and reveals carelessness on the part of the Israeli government. The excerpt entitled "A Dog's Life" was also interesting, but also aggravating in that it also shows the carelessness on the part of some in the Israeli Government and how they feel towards the Occupied Territories. The fact that a child couldn't get a passport is absurd! It's like the Palestinians are put on a sub-human level. It's humorous, but makes you think of the absurdity of the whole situation....

Project Outline

    I am going to do my project on the food in Jerusalem, and the role it plays in culture. Everyone has to eat, and I feel food is one thing that always succeeds in bringing people together no matter where in the world you are. When people eat its a time to not only get together and enjoy traditional (or contemporary) culture in a manner that everyone can relate to, but have fun as well. Food is an excellent medium  to explore how culture works, and in particular to Jerusalem, the commonalities and exchange amongst different cultures. Through exploring the different foods that have been consumed both in the past and now, I hope to gain a better understanding of the role that food plays in the culture of Jerusalem.  By exploring commonalities between different food cultures in Jerusalem, I think I can reveal much about the exchange of culture within the city.
    I plan on giving a visual presentation using prezi, showing the different foods consumed in Jerusalem and the commonalities amongst similar foods from varying groups, hopefully to help reveal they are not so different. I will also explore both historical and contemporary food culture. I will also bring food in for the class and put on a cooking demonstration.

Questions for Mariam Said

    In regards to the Knowledge is the Beginning project, what was your favorite memory of the project? In what ways were the interactions amongst its participants different from an orchestra of young people in other parts of the world? Have any of the program's participants crossed over into the political realm since its inception (when they were older, of course)? Watching this movie was really inspiring and I do agree with what the project is trying to accomplish. In a conflict as complicated as this, any positive dialogue is beneficial, before major leaps are taken to solve this issue baby steps have to be made first, this is a great start. I feel by reaching younger generations we are able to plant the seeds of future success in ending this issue.
    Another question for Mariam: Do you foresee transitioning this project into other realms? For example, not all kids have access to music, so perhaps a similar project involving sports, art, singing, etc. could prove beneficial in including more young people and bringing more youth into this dialogue. I feel using more mediums for spreading this message could bring more people in and have more of an affect on future political discussion.

Artists Against Walls Reading Response

    The Peace and Freedom Youth Forum video proved how graffiti can be something more than just vandalism, but a means of self and political expression. I think this is a pretty cool group, the idea that a group takes almost any message from an outsider and is willing to paint it, allows for a global dialogue that can't do any harm. Yes, there's the argument that it is being ran by  Dutch company and Palestinian painters are the ones who are risking themselves, but it allows for further disbursement of their conflict and want they want. Having global input could help both sides understand their own positions through seeing outsiders' opinion of them. My only disagreement with this project is allowing non-political messages to be posted, such as asking for someone's hand in marriage. To me it seems to put the wall in a less serious light, but I guess that could be a good thing.
    As for the Banksy videos, I feel his intent is good but the manner in which he does it isn't. For some reason, I get the feeling that he takes part in this for media attention. If he went there more often and did a lot of work there then I would feel like it is more personal and good-natured. I feel like to have true respect for his works in the West Bank I would need to hear further response from him on his reasoning for his pieces there and what he was trying to express.

Reading Response to Klein and Peteet & Question for PAYLARA

  Klein's article discussing the purpose of walls proved exceedingly interesting. The notion of Jerusalem's walls being there for aggression and exclusion rather than protection from outside forces is interesting to note. Usually walls perform the latter-serving as barriers; but in Jerusalem, they represent the rift between its people and the obstacle to which they must overcome. The main point I took away from this article is how the walls within Israel serve to create the "other" and serve to further separate people, both physically and socially; these walls just further promote differences and disagreements. While these walls are high in number, the manner in which it is discussed in how easy it is to cross them creates an important point. Facets such as the labor market and health care require for cooperation amongst opposing groups, thus revealing how much they really do depend on one another. Overall, this was a great article that put a new light on daily life in Jerusalem.
    Peteet's  article was by far my favorite piece we have read thus far in class. As shown by the image displayed in my blog, I LOVE graffiti. It is something I have always had a passion for- when i was a kid i use to practice it one big pieces of cardboard or any other large scrap material I could find; it's pretty much the only art form I have ever had an inkling for. I had never thought much of it until I learned more about it in college and discovered in most places in the world, it is used as an artistic form of political expression. My favorite example are found in Ireland during "The Troubles" and in Jerusalem. In Jerusalem it is a dangerous task, and although works can be short lived, when they earn outside recognition their impact is tremendous. Word is quickly spread amongst the people and their message is quickly noted. Even when they are quickly recognized by police or troops, they then serve as a platform for further political dialogue and expression. It's interesting to see what many in the U.S. see as gang vandalism can serve a political agenda and form of expression in other countries. Its importance in Jerusalem far exceeds its importance here.
    My questions for PAYALARA: What are you earliest memories of the separation barriers and did you always view it as something excluding people or just as simple barriers? Also, what is the most powerful piece of art (graffiti) you have witnessed? How did others react to it?

Weblog #5

    So far, for me at least, the Jerusalem Project has done a tremendous amount on educating me on Jerusalem/ the region's problems. For someone like me in the class who does not have an academic background concerning middle eastern languages/culture or the Jewish/Palestinian diasporas, I came into the class with little knowledge. The project has allowed me to learn about these topics and be able to take part in a dialogue in which I wouldn't have considered being a part of in the past. The hardest part for me has been coming into this with hardly any prior knowledge.
    The challenges for the Jerusalem Project are few. Mainly, I think the project needs to do more outside of the classroom. Yes we have blogs and have to do a few other things, but I feel there is more we could do in the community in promoting the project. Teaming up with other university groups and increasing local numbers would help spread the project's message. Another challenge the project should take on is spreading the class to more schools, doing so will further promote the project's message. The classes can't become too numbered, that would make its intimate interactions impossible. Maybe introducing the problem to students at younger ages could make transitioning into a academic dialogue easier as well

Weblog #4

I, like many others in the class, am in favor of the two state solution to solve the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. From what we have read, it seems that a solution involving a unified state is impossible. Having a joint government would not be plausible either, there would be too much tension and disagreements to have a fluid and successful government. With so many people having different stances and viewpoints, many of which would be officials, this joint government just wouldn't be efficient or viable. So, I feel the most viable option is a two-state solution based on the pre 1967 borders. Doing so, I feel could please many people. It wouldn't be an easy transition, but with due time, it could prove successful. having the UN intervene to ease the transition and do some "peace keeping" could help as well. To help, I think having immigration agreements between the two states to make traveling from one state to the other should be initiated in order to make life easier. Many of the people here have attachments, perhaps family, in the proposed other state. So having some form of relaxed interstate traveling agreement, whether it be for work or religion, would be beneficial.
    As for Jerusalem, I think making it an international city, or even better, a small city-state ran by joint religious institutions for the purpose of preserving and promoting religion could be cool. Doing so wouldn't be possible for Israel as a whole, but perhaps making its holiest city a shared place could work. If both major parties had states of their own, maybe sharing a city could work because since they would have something of their own, perhaps sharing just a little could work. I don't know, maybe not though. This is a very difficult idea to try to predict. Here's a video link that helped stir u some interesting thoughts and made things more personal and easier to think about: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6K23rXLev7o

Final Project Idea

Alright, well originally in class i was thinking of doing a project related to language and the role it plays in Jerusalem daily life, i.e. how the exchange of language can serve as an exchange of culture and so forth. I'm interested in linguistics and such, so I felt such a project could be interesting. looking at different slang and how the different groups interact would be neat, but very difficult, so I am not sure if this is what I would do.

I am leaning towards doing something about food. Yes, it seems very broad, but from my travels I have found the one thing that brings people together and more people can relate to more than anything is food. It brings people together. Exploring different cuisines in the area could be something fun and something I am very into. I'm kind of a foodie. Looking at the role that food can play in a culture can reveal a lot about its people and how they interact. I would most likely do a visual projection via a computer that would accompanied by some tasty treats :)

Reading Response for 10/05/11

     Although we were only given the epilogue to read for tomorrow, I really enjoyed this reading. Compared to Armstrong, his narrative style is a little less formal and is much easier to read. Besides being easier to read, I feel that its brief descriptions of contemporary Jerusalem/Israel are much more immediate and easier to relate to. It's definitely an "extension" into the here and now because it focuses on some of the more recent events that are more easily relatable to the conflict today. The events he discusses (such as the Day of Atonement in October 1973 and the 1977 bombing of King David) are the basis for some of the animosity in the conflict today. The aspect of his writing that I enjoy the most is how he makes is more personal. He included a personal narrative about his time spent as a youth with palestinians in Israel; it provided a human aspect that we could all envision or perhaps relate to.
     As for Naomi Chazan's article, I also found it very interesting. I agree with how ludicrous this law is. This is what needed to NOT happen, all this does is further seclude Palestinians from the country in which they inhabit. People whose families have been in Jerusalem for hundreds of years would all of the sudden be forced into feeling even more out of place. Something needs to be done to allow all of the people in not only Jerusalem, but Israel, to feel included. Netanyahu's further cultural isolation of non-Jews is not helping in settling disputes. I wish the politicians, activists, and people of Jerusalem would look to a place like Singapore for guidance. This city-state has more people than Jerusalem, and almost as much as the entire nation of Israel, but is far more diverse. The country has five religions that are equally proportioned (more or less) amongst its citizens, and some of which are seen as adversaries (Christians and Muslims) in other parts of the world. But here, all notions of religion are separate from the state and any act of inequality on the basis of religion is highly punishable; it's kind of a forced egalitarian state. Perhaps taking any reference to religion out of the equation could help remedy some of the problems here, but I know this is impossible because Jerusalem is more or less based on religion, and I don't see addressing religion ever being taken our of this conflict. I want to say it would be easy for people here to follow other's lead and separate religion and politics, and promote equal rights (whether it be over land, nationality, or civil rights) , but I know the problem is so deeply ingrained into people that we could be far away from such a dream.

Chapters 16-18 Reading Response

    I, like many of my fellow classmates that have posted thus far, found the last three chapters of this book very insightful and the most useful sections of the book. These last few chapters gave a modern view on everything going on, and shed some new light on things for me. Before, I had always been considerably pro-Israeli considering my mother's family is Jewish and I have a few friends who have lived in Israel.
    I hate to admit this but I had always felt that Israelis had always been free the ones who were 100% good. Now I know how stupid of me that was. My freshman year here I met a Palestinian who was against any form of support to Israel; he despised American Government and any big corporation that supported Israel. We were acquaintances, but I could never quite understand why he had this intense passion over the fate of his people. It always slightly bothered me, but I never really grasped his views until reading these last few chapters.
     Looking at pre 1948 maps of the occupied lands by arabs/palestinians in Israel is phenomenal. They use to dominate the region, but now, they are a minority. The same goes true for their current presence in Jerusalem. I can now see where my friend from freshman year was coming from when he said "jews are doing to us what happened to them". It's sad, but this whole back and fourth disagreement for thousands of years has been ridiculous and it's sad that it has such a negative affect on people's lives even today. From these last few chapters I have read what exactly has happened in Jerusalem since then and I can now have sympathy for this guy. It reveals how little I knew about this conflict before.
    The book as a whole as been eye-opening to me. Since I grew up in a house with parents of two different religious backgrounds, we were raised with no religious ideologies or teachings. Yes, we celebrated some holidays, but I never really learned much about these religions. This book was really my first opportunity to do so. I was able to learn not only about the history of the Arab/Israeli conflict, of Jerusalem, and of the Abrahamic religions, but a little about myself as well. It was my first real foray into many of these ancient stories that many of my counterparts have known since bible or hebrew school. It's kind of cool to know what people are talking about now, and I'm so glad I read this book!