It Can Be Lonely to Advocate for Peace on Campus
By Sharon Otterman
The New York Times
Dec. 22, 2024
"The scene has become emblematic at many American college campuses since the start of the Israel-Hamas war. Students waving Palestinian flags face off against students waving Israeli flags, each group shouting chants that enrage the other side…
"Students for Standing Together, a new student group at U.C.L.A. that aims to unite Israelis and Palestinians to call for a cease-fire in Gaza. In the long term, they hope to push for a peaceful, equitable solution for both sides in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
"They are part of another, broader group: students and faculty members on college campuses across the country whose nuanced views place them between the extremes of Israeli-Palestinian advocacy. While the number of people organizing for coexistence from within that middle ground remains comparatively modest, they say their effort is gaining momentum, even if taking such positions can be isolating and difficult.
"One of the stumbling blocks, those involved say, is that for both Jews and Palestinians, the key constituencies for these efforts, there is intense pressure to be fully supportive of one’s own people in a time of war.
"…Jews can find themselves caught in a kind of partisan no man’s land when they try to take a complex position on the conflict, like being highly critical of the Israeli government and yet still believing in a Jewish state.
"Palestinians who want to call for empathy for both Palestinian and Israeli civilians also don’t hear themselves reflected in chants that sound like zero-sum solutions…
"'It can feel very lonely,' said one student."
About Heart of a Nation
Empowering the next generation of American, Israeli, and Palestinian change-makers to embrace better, together.
אנחנו מכנסים הוגים מובילים, פעילים חברתיים, ומחוללי שינוי לעתיד, אמריקאים, ישראלים ופלסטינאים, המחויבים לשיפור החברות שלהם.
نحن أمريكيون وإسرائيليون وفلسطينيون نبني ونكوّن روابط من أجل التعلم والتفكير والمشاركة معًا حتى نشجع الحلول التقدمية بشأن القضايا التي تهمنا جميعًا.