Student's idea on execution, gender, etc.

In this post: Reflection on teaching classes and culture in Hebron (Pal ideas on death penalty, gender, boycotting Israel, etc.); News, etc.

Although I am very busy teaching English classes in Hebron, I am also learning a lot about Palestinian thinking and culture at the same time. Every day, I ask one student from each class to prepare a discussion topic and questions for the class. The students' choices of topics and their responses have been fascinating.

Sometimes, I ask the students to simply debate the topics, regardless of their actual positions, and other times, the students are eager to share their genuine opinions. The students find it difficult to argue for positions they don't believe in, and usually their true beliefs shine through eventually.

Early in the courses, I chose the topic of the Death Penalty to discuss in class to give the students an example of what they could talk about. Many of the men in my classes were strongly in favor of the Death Penalty, usually arguing that the practice persuades other people from committing crimes. I can only think of one man who seemed somewhat opposed to execution. Women in the classes tended to be strongly against the Death Penalty; one woman told me, "I can't bear the thought of killing anyone. Even my worst enemies, I can't even comprehend wanting them dead."

Perhaps the most interesting topics students have chosen have centered around the role of the sexes. Across the board, men defended the practices of women being treated differently than men in the work place. However, the men's positions were more complex than might initially be apparent. All the men, in all the classes, were in favor of women being able to work outside of the home; however, the men also believed there were certain jobs women shouldn't do. One man who often travels to China on business explained, "When I go to China, I see women there who are working very hard, difficult jobs, carrying heavy loads, working long hours, etc., and I feel sorry for them. We should not treat women that way." It was very clear from the discussions that the role of women as taking care of the house, raising children, etc. and the role of men as working outside of the home is still very ingrained in this society. Women in my classes tended to more strongly support the right of women to decide what jobs they do, and the women were very clear that they resent having to work outside of the home, then expected to do all their house duties as well, without help from the men. Most men admitted that they do not help the women much in the house.

Women's roles in the workplace should be restricted, according to the men, mostly to clerical kinds of work. Several men mentioned that women should not be in positions as managers over men, and most of the arguments regarding the sexes were backed up by religious reasons as well. Several of the women in the classes said they did not think it was fair that men get the final say in a husband-wife relationship (essentially, veto power), but the men said that God had set it up this way to keep order and that someone needed to eventually be able to cast the tie-breaking vote, in the event that the husband and wife cannot agree (I have heard these kinds of arguments in the US, and I believe they were prevalent a generation or two ago). It should be noted that my students come from more wealthy, educated parts of this society.

In one of the classes, the students wanted to know my opinions on the idea of women in the workplace and husband-wife decision making. I said that I thought women should be allowed to choose what work they do, that it should not be up to men to decide this for them. I explained that I had no problem with clearly delineated, equal roles for a woman and man, as long as each individual could actually choose to perform his/her role and not be forced into it (i.e., actually have a real choice to do a different role if s/he wanted). Regarding decision making, I said that I thought that each person should be equal and no one should have a veto vote. The men in the classes said that would create too much confusion and anarchy, but I countered that if they had a friend that they disagreed with, and they treated that friend the same way they treated their wives, eventually simply making a unilateral decision and forcing it on the other person, their friend would resent that and eventually cease to be a friend. The women in the class agreed with me, but the men said that a marriage relationship is different than a friendship. We came away from the class acknowledging that we might have different opinions, but that we could all respect each other regardless. Even my male friends in the class seemed grateful that I could disagree with them, yet still give them room to have a different opinion.

Women's rights in Palestine is different from some other parts of the Muslim world. Women are mostly very encouraged to get an education and work (usually part time) outside the home. However, men here, in general, tend to be quite lazy and have this top-down mentality that they apply to women and their subordinates. I have heard Palestinian women say, "Palestinian men are pigs. There's not one good Palestinian man I've met. But, what choice do we (women) have. Eventually, we have to settle down and have a family." I am sure that there are some exceptions to these generalizations, but I don't believe there is one Palestinian man I've met that completely defies the stereotype of this top-down power structure.

The discussions in my classes have made me appreciate Palestinian women all the more, and while I have many Palestinian men who are my friends, I'm not sure I deeply respect any of them. Palestinian women have their flaws--they gossip a lot and can be hard on the children--but they are much harder working in the home and less aggressive in personality. It makes me wonder if 1-200 years ago, male culture in the West was not similar. From things I've read, there seems to be a lot in common between the male culture here and Western male culture a century or two ago. People who know me well know that I can be quite critical of some forms of modern Feminism in the US; however, Feminism in the West may have helped to change some of the more negative things about male culture.

A few days ago, another interesting topic that came up in class was whether Palestinians should boycott Israel. It was surprising to me that essentially all in the class were against Pal's boycotting Israel. One man said, "When I buy something, I want to buy the best quality, and those products are often Israeli. We don't produce much of good quality here in Palestine." Everyone in the class thought that it was impossible for Pal's to boycott Israel, that their economy was just too dependent on Israel. All the students thought that other countries should boycott Israel, but since Palestine is not a separate country, it should not be held to the same standards. All the students eventually agreed that Pal's should avoid buying Israeli products as much as possible but that a complete boycott was impossible.


I have two weeks left to teach English in Hebron, and then I will be close to returning to the States. If anyone wants my flight itinerary and/or to meet me at the airport, please email me and I will send you the information.



News from the region you might have missed:

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/Suspend-EU-Israel-Trade-Agreement
Sign the petition to ask the EU to suspend trade agreements with Israel.


http://lists.qumsiyeh.org/pipermail/humanrights/2009-February/000021.html
6 actions you can take for Peace.


http://www.maannews.net/en/index.php?opr=ShowDetails&ID=35777
Israel decreases the amount of area Gazan's can fish. Slowly tightening the noose.


http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1064246.html
The US may participate in anti-racism conference, despite Israel urging the US to boycott it because of fears the conference will pound Israel for being a racist state. It will be ironic if the Obama administration actually attends the conference--a step away from racism in the US.


http://www.amin.org/articles.php?t=ENews&id=2821
An Israeli Jew speaks out against Israel's policies, says Israel should welcome everyone.


http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1064162.html
US MAY pressure Israel on settlement expansions.


http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7891434.stm
Gaza's population is quickly rising. Details here . . .


http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1064503.html
W Bank Settlements continue to expand. Here's a classic example of one expanding right now.


http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1064852.html
Israel and the US may have a clandestine program that is assassinating Iranian scientists believed to be working with nuclear technology in Iran.


http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article10322.shtml
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1065552.html
Two analyses on the Israeli film, "Waltz with Bashir," which was nominated and favored for an Oscar this year, but failed to receive it. I don't agree with all the ideas expressed in these critques. It is true that the film may be inherently Israeli and largely ignore the suffering of Pal's, but I also believe the film is partly positive in its negative portrayal of war and war's effects on those who wield power.


http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1066059.html
The founder of Al-Qaida blasts Al-Quaida's terrorist techniques and says the group should have never attacked the US or targeted civilians.


http://www.maannews.net/en/index.php?opr=ShowDetails&ID=35802
The EU is funding a wind energy project in Hebron. Wind turbines will be used to completely power a hospital there. This is very significant because Pal's rely on Israel for electricity. If Pal's could be even partly self-sufficient with electricity, it would be a major step forward.


http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article10303.shtml
The criticism of Hamas smuggling weapons through tunnels is hypocritical when compared with the "legal" arms trade to Israel, which is much larger and much more deadly.


http://www.maannews.net/en/index.php?opr=ShowDetails&ID=35935
Par for the course, Israeli soldiers uproot newly planted olive trees near Bethlehem.


http://www.maannews.net/en/index.php?opr=ShowDetails&ID=35999
Israel peace group says that if Israel had nothing to hide about it actions in Gaza, why aren't journalists allowed into Gaza.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1066821.html
The Obama administration seems to be growing slightly impatient (too little, too late) with Israel's delays and rules for allowing food aid into Gaza.


http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1067244.html
You can email your message to a group in the W Bank and have the message graffitied on the Wall.


http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1066375.html
Bank of Israel cuts interest rate to all-time low. A study finds Israel has already been in a recession for some time.

Action: Ask Obama to end military funding to Israel

Please read the following links, then consider taking action (the last link) to urge Obama to end US military funding of Israel. After Amnesty International's recent report, it is slightly more likely there could be a shift in the US's blind support of Israel.

If you don't have time to read the article, please go directly to the last link to take action.


BBC article on Amnesty Intl's report: Israel and Hamas committed war crimes.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7904929.stm


Urge Obama to end support of Israeli military.
http://endtheoccupation.org/article.php?id=1867

Israeli elections, expalaining US support of Israel, etc.

In this post: Israeli elections; explaining US support of Israel; Pal prisoners; cultural events; news, etc.


I'm sitting in a cafe near my house to get internet because the internet is not working at my house, so please pardon if my narrative is rushed this evening.

Perhaps the biggest news from here is the election in Israel, which brought into parliament the most conservative government in decades. The election saw the rise of an unexpected star: Lieberman, a politician who calls for Israel to re-draw its lines to exclude Arabs from Israel and proposes a litmus test for all Israeli citizens--everyone must swear loyalty to the state and prove it through serving in the Israeli military. Lieberman's popularity and the surge of conservative movements within Israel underscores the inherent racism at the core of Israel.

This week, comments I made to my students about the elections in Israel brought laughs. Palestinians have a dark sense of humor, probably a result of living in depressing circumstances (if you can't do anything else, you might as well find some cynicism for the situation). Basically, what I said is that the people in Israel had a choice in this election between electing the same officials as before (those who planned the war in Gaza) who would continue beating up on Pal's, or, Israelis could choose to beat up on Pal's more. Israelis chose more.

People in Palestine can't understand why people and the gov.'t in the US so blindly support Israel. Just tonight, a Palestinian-Christian family asked me to explain this phenomenon. I have not found a good answer, but part of my explanation is that people in the US don't know the situation here and don't have an historical perspective on the matter. Many in the US believe Israel is the ancient Jewish homeland, and for religious reasons, we should support the Jews. But, also in US politics, supporting Israel is a litmus test, and most successful US politicians must swear allegiance to Israel or face failure. Furthermore, the US is no better or different than Israel. As top US senators said recently as they backed Israel's war in Gaza, The US would respond no differently if rockets were flying over its borders. The problem both in the US and Israel is that people don't stop to ask if there might be reasons why those rockets are flying. We are not able to see our own part in the matter, and we only believe we need to exterminate the terrorists (it's all their fault, and we have no fault in it). I saw this response in the US after the 9/11 attacks, and I see it in Israel too. As long as gov.'ts and people continue to see this black and white, good vs. evil, we have no fault, kill them all mentality, the blood-letting will continue.

Even if Obama in the States wanted to help the Pal's (and that's a big IF), he has other priorities right now (the economy, Iraq, Afghanistan, etc.), and Palestine is low on the list, unfortunately. And, even in Palestine was a big priority, bringing peace here would also likely require strong leaders of peace in both Israel and Palestine. Israel certainly doesn't have that commitment or leadership toward peace, and the Palestinians are divided (due to Israeli and US action to push them toward a civil war, which probably wasn't difficult to do).

I believe that some kind of lasting peace won't return here until the US begins to withhold money and push for sanctions against Israel unless Israel changes its ways, end the occupation, settlement expansion, etc. We in the US are not even close to divesting from Israel, so peace in this region may still be decades away. Unfortunately, the US's actions must change, just as much as Israel's.


On the way home from Hebron this week, my taxi stopped on its way into Bethlehem, and the man in the front passengers seat got out of the car to a crowd of about 30 people. As soon as he exited the vehicle, a boy of perhaps seven jumped on him, wrapped his arms and legs around his father, and kissed him. The whole crowd was jubilant at the man's return, and they were carrying flags and signs. My traveling companion had just been released from Israel prison, where he spent 6 months. The celebrations for those who serve longer in Israeli prisons are much more elaborate.


In the last few weeks, I've had the opportunity to attend a viewing of the film "Watlz with Bashir" and a presentation of Israeli young people who are refusing to serve in the military and have done prison time for that. Both the film and the presentation are described below, in the news links.

In general, I am doing well. I am teaching English in Hebron about 6 days a week and studying Arabic, so I am staying busy. We, here, are praying for more more rain because we've received very little during this winter, and I fear that this Summer in Palestine will be unbearable, as Israel will undoubtedly continue to steal more Palestinian water and give back to Pal's very little of what it steals.



News from the region:

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1061917.html
With this handy site, you can view how Israel voted, which cities voted which way, etc.


http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1061172.html
The star of this year's election in Israel, ultra-right wing candidate Lieberman, is reported to have been a member of an illegal group in Israel.


http://www.palestinechronicle.com/view_article_details.php?id=14772
If we applied the same rules to Israel that Israel wants to apply to the Palestinians, then if Likud is elected to gov.'t in Israel, the world should boycott and blockade Israel because the gov.'t doesn't recognize Palestine or Hamas.


http://www.maannews.net/en/index.php?opr=ShowDetails&ID=35463
50% of aid items sent to Gaza refused entry by Israel. A list of some of the items refused for "security" reasons looks very bad for Israel.


http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article10255.shtml
A comparison of Ireland and Palestine and whether Obama's special envoy (who helped to bring peace to Ireland) could do the same here.


http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1060869.html
Israel's Defense Minister calls for Israel to build an underground tunnel to link Gaza and the W Bank.


http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1060891.html
Review of the new, much-awarded Israeli film, "Waltz with Bashir." This animated documentary tells the story of Israeli soldiers' experiences during the Lebanon War of 1982 and the massacre of Palestinian villages in Lebanon during that time.


http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1061424.html
Obama to work for deal with Russia to cut nuclear arsenals by 80%.


http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1061358.html
In defiance or the Road Map to Peace, Israel okays the building of another settlement in the W Bank. The idea is: "evacuate" one settlement, build another.


http://www.maannews.net/en/index.php?opr=ShowDetails&ID=35514
In a moment of courage, S African dock workers refuse to unload the cargo of an Israeli ship, citing Israel Apartheid rule in Palestine. Earlier in 2008, the same dock crew refused to unload a ship that was destined for Zimbabwe.


http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1061474.html
Gazans "show and tell": look at the left-over bombs we've collected. The stories and evidence point to the use of out-lawed weapons used by Israel during the war.


http://www.maannews.net/en/index.php?opr=ShowDetails&ID=35541
Israeli human rights group: 548 Pal's in Israeli prisons without charges, open ended. Other details on detainments as well.


http://www.maannews.net/en/index.php?opr=ShowDetails&ID=35553
14,000 homes, 68 gov.'t buildings, 31 NGOs destroyed in Gaza, leaving 600,000 tons of rubble.


http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1061955.html
Arms from Israel's war for "independence" found in Jewish synagogue. Apparently, Hamas and early Jewish-Israelis have quite a lot in common: fighting for independence from foreign rule, ruthlessly attacking both military and civilian targets, and storing weapons in places of worship.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ax-3KgUPCQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uEW-C-czLdI&feature=related
Watch this short but good 60 Minutes report on how settlements are destorying chances for peace in the W Bank.


http://www.imemc.org/article/58794
Bill introduced in US congress would punish UNRWA (the UN agency that gives humanitarian assistance to Pal's) for its work in Gaza.


http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/blog/2009/01/exchange_between_bill_moyers_a.html
Exchange between Bill Moyers of PBS and Abraham Foxman of the Anti-defamation League. Moyers is attacked for criticizing Israel.


http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/20090119_peace_is_in_the_eye_of_the_beholder/
An interesting essay by Chris Hedges. I agree with most of what he says about the situation in the Middle East, but I resent his shallow pot-shots at pacifists. Most of what he says is backed by good research, but his off-handed remarks about pacifists are not.


http://www.maannews.net/en/index.php?opr=ShowDetails&ID=35655
Israeli youth who have refused to enlist in the military made a presentation in Bethlehem. Most of them have served jail time already for not enlisting.


http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/jan/04/israel-gaza-invasion-troops-hamas/print
As this article points out, Israel could easily halt the rocket fire from Gaza if that was the aim of its offensive in Gaza; however, perhaps one of the real reasons for the war was regime change.


http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1063765.html
Jimmy Carter's latest perspective on peace in Palestine.


http://www.maannews.net/en/index.php?opr=ShowDetails&ID=35739
In a first, a US college divests from companies supporting Israel's occupation.


http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article10292.shtml
US Lawyers report on human rights and America's role in the war in Gaza.