November 5, 2009
By Dr. Leonard Wallock, Associate Director
Walter H. Capps Center for the Study of Ethics, Religion, and Public Life
University of California, Santa Barbara
[Editor’s note: This is an email the ICC received following the day-long UC Santa Barbara visit of David Makovsky, Director of the Project on the Middle East Peace Process at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, and Ghaith al-Omari, former advisor to Mahmoud Abbas.]
It has always been my practice to wait a few days after an event has taken place before thanking our guest speakers so that I may first have an opportunity to gauge the impact of their appearance…Even before you left town, Rabbi Evan Goodman and I had begun receiving very complimentary assessments--whether in person, over the phone, or by email--of the positive impact that your presence made upon our campus and community. Since these comments were made by those representing all three of the constituencies who heard you speak--students, faculty, and community members--it is clear that your remarks were greatly appreciated in all quarters. That the compliments on the programs in which you participated came from Jews, Muslims, and Christians alike also underscores the universal appeal of your approach.
Immediately after your departure, I received a series of emails from the 16 students belonging to Muslim and Jewish campus organizations with whom we had lunch. The students readily grasped and deeply appreciated the profound symbolism of having two distinguished policy experts, who hold differing views concerning the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, talk with one another for the purpose of seeking common ground and a realistic solution. Here are some of the emails that I received:
"It was great to get an educational overview of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from a team of two different very-involved and experienced passionate political figures. Not only that, but it was motivational in that it brought together several different campus groups with differing views and opinions on the topic, and sparked the excitement and energy to work together to set a new healthier tone on campus."
(Board member, Santa Barbara Hillel)
“Thank you very much for inviting us to the luncheon with David Makovsky and Ghaith al-Omari yesterday. We have found the dialogue and discussion to be very interesting and informative, and we look forward in participating and working together in many future events.
Thank you again!”
(Member, Muslim Students Association)
"The luncheon was absolutely a great experience. The format of the luncheon fostered ideas, optimism, and history that simply cannot be taught in classrooms. It was also very valuable hearing from a realistic, logical Palestinian, and it gave me hope that after a tough sixty or so years of struggle, we can achieve Peace in the near future."
(Board member, Santa Barbara Hillel)
“I appreciate the opportunity to have attended the lunch, and evening dialogue because of that very civil exchange. As both speakers touched upon, in a region with so much negativity even a glimmer of light can be expanded to a blinding array.
As you may remember, I am involved with the Israeli-Palestinian Film Festival. Its our intention that the festival inspire the same kind of hopes: that a peace agreement can be reached, that members of both societies can peacefully co-exist, and co-operate on issues that need urgent attention (ie. Climate Change, Resource Management, etc.) For future events/workshops, I would like to suggest that speakers be brought in on leadership and dialogue training. This would tremendously support and focus the energies that David and Gaith have left our groups, and help us further reach out to communities, campus groups, and individuals--to "strengthen the moderates" on both sides. I might suggest OneVoice, a grassroots organization that has been working with Gaith, and that I had the pleasure of working with previously. In closing, thank you again for your efforts. Let's be in contact.”
(Chair, Israeli Palestinian Film Festival)
At the beginning of the week, I also attended the annual dinner for the Anti Defamation League which attracted 400 people and which offered me a way of sampling public reaction to your heavily-attended, public discussion of “How America Can Bring Arabs and Israelis Together Towards Peace and Coexistence” at 8:00 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 21 in UCSB Campbell Hall. Those with whom I spoke--another of whom ran up to me--were enormously impressed by the caliber of your discussion and, perhaps most importantly, the hope for concrete policy solutions that it has inspired.
By making a joint appearance in a variety of settings at UCSB and by focusing in each case upon realistic pathways to peace, you have helped us take the first difficult step in restoring the intellectual goodwill and personal trust that are essential to the free exchange of ideas within a university.
Changing the culture of learning at UCSB to ensure that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is approached in a constructive fashion will take time. It may require not only a series of one-day events like the one in which you participated, but more sustained activities (such as longer-term visits that involve seminars and courses taught by other policy experts, scholars, journalists, activists).
For that reason, I am now beginning to meet with students and faculty to find out what they feel would be most helpful going forward. I would very much like to include you in our deliberations so as to benefit from your experience with other campuses and your suggestions regarding possible speakers and programs.
With best regards,
Leonard
If you’re interested in hosting David Makovsky and Ghaith al-Omari on campus please be in touch with Andrea Sorin at asorin@israelcc.org or 202-449-6583.