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A Zionist Among Palestinians offers the perspective of an ordinary Israeli citizen who became concerned about the Israeli military’s treatment of Palestinians and was moved to work for peace. Hillel Bardin, a confirmed Zionist, was a reservist in the Israeli army during the first intifada when he met Palestinians arrested by his unit. He learned that they supported peace with Israel and the then-taboo proposal for a two-state solution, and that they understood the intifada as a struggle to achieve these goals. Bardin began to organize dialogues between Arabs and Israelis in West Bank villages, towns, and refugee camps. In 1988, he was jailed for meeting with Palestinians while on active duty in Ramallah. Over the next two decades, he participated in a variety of peace organizations and actions, from arranging for Israelis to visit Palestinian communities and homes, to the joint jogging group “Runners for Peace,” to marches, political organizing, and demonstrations supporting peace, security, and freedom. In this very personal account, Bardin tries to come to grips with the conflict in a way that takes account of both Israeli-Zionist and Palestinian aims.
“A rare first-hand account of dialogue and joint-action efforts on the ground between Israelis and Palestinians [and] brings to light unknown grassroots episodes that illustrate both the hopeful potential for coexistence and the huge obstacles that continue to plague these well-intentioned efforts.”—Neil Caplan, author of The Israel-Palestine Conflict: Contested Histories
“Enlightening and moving.”—Howard M. Sachar, author of A History of Israel
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Creators
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Series
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Publisher
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Release date
June 26, 2012 -
Formats
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Kindle Book
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OverDrive Read
- ISBN: 9780253002235
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EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9780253002235
- File size: 4060 KB
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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February 6, 2012
Bardin, a founder of the Shalom Yerushalayim Party, offers stories of his experiences working to create a dialogue between Palestinians and Israelis from before the first intifada through the second. His tales span the spectrum of the Palestinians living both in the Israeli state and under occupation in the West Bank. From the denial of education to Palestinians to the refusal of building permits and systematic land theft, this self-proclaimed leftist Zionist explains the oppression that the Israeli state inflicts on its Palestinian residents and citizens. Bardin candidly discusses pervasive racist Israeli behavior, jokes, and sentiments, and details his own journey working with Palestinians, beginning with his surprise at learning that both Palestinians and Israelis want peace, despite his preconceived notions. His surprise at Palestinian willingness to cooperate is effective at showing the transformation of his views, but quickly becomes repetitive. Despite this, he repeats the now tired Israeli rhetoric of being unable to find a partner for peace among the Palestinian population, which is disproved by his heartwarming stories of successful collaboration.
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