Harvard Israel Trek Students at Yasser Arafat's grave in Ramallah
Recently six Israeli Harvard undergraduates,
five veterans of the Israel Defense Forces and the sixth an Arab-Israeli, organized the
Harvard Israel Trek, which is currently underway during Harvard's spring break.
The participants are a group of non-Jewish Harvard students.
Last Monday, as the organizers write in today's Times of Israel,
participants of the Harvard College Israel Trek visited Ramallah in order to meet with senior members of the Palestinian leadership. During the visit students were shown the Mukataa, the headquarters of Palestinian Authority, which includes the grave of Yasser Arafat and met with Nabil Sha’ath, Ali Jarbawi, and members of the Palestinian Negotiation Team. In line with our objective to broaden exposure to the issues discussed on the trek, participants have been documenting the entirety of our time in Israel through pictures, video, blogging and other forms of social media. As such, a photograph of participants posing at the burial site of Yasser Arafat was shared on social media and picked up by various online publications.
The trek is supported by Harvard Hillel and funded by Boston's Combined Jewish Philanthropies and a number of family foundations.
For the kerfluffle this is beginning to cause, please follow me below the fold.
TruthRevolt, a right-wing website of which I'd not previously heard, quotes a "Boston Jewish leader" as being "appalled and offended" by the visit to Arafat's grave. This 'leader,' it turns out, is a Rabbi Chananel Weiner, director of Aish Campus Boston. (Aish, as it happens,is an ultra-Orthodox "outreach" organization of extremist, 'Greater Israel' views.
I am appalled and offended by the visit to Arafat’s grave funded by Boston’s Jewish community for the Harvard Trek to Israel.
For Boston’s Jewish community’s funds to go toward the lionizing of Arafat strikes me as a turn of events that will stain our community beyond recognition.
To my mind, the willingness of Harvard Hillel and the 'organized' Boston Jewish community to support the Harvard Israel Trek is a shining moment for the community.
In their Times of Israel article, the trek's six organizers write:
As Israelis who love and care about the identity and future of Israel, we believe in the importance of nuanced and responsible engagement with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in general and the Palestinian narrative in particular. That said, let us be clear: the visit to the Mukataa and to Arafat’s grave was never about honoring Arafat’s memory; not for a second would we dream of “paying respects,” as some have suggested, to a man responsible for the death of countless Israelis. And as Israelis, this experience was troubling and upsetting. But it isn’t about us. It is about creating an honest conversation regarding some of the most contentious issues facing both Israelis and Palestinians today.
Whether we like or not, Yasser Arafat is important to the Palestinian narrative, and as educators committed to an honest exploration of these issues we could not afford to deviate from Trek policy that encouraged students to document and share their experiences with their respective communities. We are saddened and sorry that a photo was taken out of context, causing pain to people who we love and respect.
* * *
We stand firm behind our decision to visit Ramallah. Ignoring the Palestinian narrative would be seen as an attempt to mask the situation in the West Bank by focusing on issues beyond the conflict, and thus delegitimize our position as educators. But more importantly, failing to confront the reality facing Israelis and Palestinians is unjust, irresponsible and counterproductive, and it weakens the legitimacy of Israel in the broader sense. Our ability to expose students to a multiplicity of narratives is a sign of strength, not weakness. It is a testament to our unwavering commitment to building a better future for both Israelis and Palestinians. We might add that visiting Ramallah is not unique to the Harvard College Israel Trek: Every peer-led trip to Israel from the various Harvard schools, as well as universities across the country, includes a visit to Ramallah and a meeting with Palestinian officials.
Similarly, I my heart was gladdened to learn of the formation of
The Third Narrative Academic Advisory Council, about which I diaried yeterday, a group of "
progressive scholars and academics who reject the notion that one has to be either pro-Israel or pro-Palestinian. We believe that empathy for the suffering and aspirations of both peoples, and respect for their national narratives, is essential if there is to be a peaceful solution. Scholars and academics should play a positive role in asking difficult questions, and promoting critical thinking, about the Israel-Palestinian conflict. To achieve this goal we insist on the importance of academic freedom and open intellectual exchange, and so reject calls for academic boycotts and blacklists, as well as efforts to punish academics for their political speech, including even those who support the academic boycotts that we oppose."