Introducing APN on Campus
I'm a Jew, and a Zionist. I'm pro-Israel and pro-peace. I want security for Israel. I want rights for Palestinians. I want two states for two peoples.
As far as I'm concerned, none of that is controversial. Yet, you wouldn't know it from hearing the majority of the discourse about Israel and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that pervades our universities. This polarized dialogue is what many American students who care about Israel have had to deal with.
Like me, many have been looking for an alternative, moderate voice on campus.
I've been a strong supporter of Israel for much of my life, due in large part to what many in my family experienced during World War II. Israel's preservation is, for us, an existential issue. As such, it's always been difficult for me to be critical of a Jewish state- with its existence seemingly a miracle- that has been under constant threat for decades. A state founded by a people who have lived with such threats for centuries.
What was never difficult was maintaining a sense of solidarity and sympathy toward Israel.
Those feelings never waned. But as I grew older and began to closely study Israel and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, I found things to be much more complicated than I had thought. It wasn't that the narrative I had been influenced by was necessarily untrue- it was just incomplete. However, I often found it hard to know which sources of information were trustworthy and objective. And it was a challenge to find opinions and analyses of Israel's actions that were painted with shades of grey.
I discovered Americans for Peace Now after my birthright trip to Israel in 2006. Almost immediately, I realized that it was the kind of organization I had been looking for - one willing to criticize the government of Israel when necessary in order to help ensure the survival of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state. The fact that APN is so intimately connected to Peace Now (Shalom Achshav) in Israel only enhanced their credibility.
I was thrilled to have found APN. But I truly wish that I had done so earlier, when I was an undergraduate.
College students these days have an array of options for how they study, learn, and involve themselves on campus. They can enroll in a variety of classes that cover subjects from all angles. They can attend department-sponsored events that feature many different viewpoints. And they have access to a wide range of student groups that seem to cover every perspective on every topic under the sun.
Except when it comes to Israel.
I recently received my master's degree while working as a teaching assistant in my university's Israel Studies Department. There, I witnessed the dynamics that all-too-often characterize discussions about Israel and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: two loud camps polarized at either end of the spectrum, while a much larger group of moderates remains largely unengaged.
At Americans for Peace Now, we're now changing that with APN on Campus.
The pursuit of a balanced and fact-based education for college students is the foundation of APN on Campus. We want to create more space at colleges and universities for moderate voices on Israel. We also want to make APN a go-to resource for students interested in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Ultimately, we want to help arm students with credible, comprehensive knowledge and a willingness to speak out.
With these goals in mind, APN on Campus is comprised of two main areas of focus. The first, our Academic Resource Program, is designed to help faculty members and departments enrich and diversify the conversation about Israel in classrooms and beyond. We are currently offering a number of expert speakers, and will launch an interactive online resource page prior to the Spring 2013 semester to be used both in and out of the classroom.
The second focus area of APN on Campus is our Student Advocacy Initiative, oriented toward relevant student organizations. Its aim is to bolster and broaden the programs, events, and collective actions that these groups sponsor and participate in. We seek to collaborate with those who agree with us as well as those who disagree- as long as we're able to fairly present our position to students.
We'll also be searching for ways to engage students who care about Israel but, until now, have remained apathetic.
Moreover, we'll be exploring other innovative ways to integrate our expertise and resources into a classroom setting and help make the student experience more dynamic and interactive. For example, APN often partners with the American Task Force on Palestine, a moderate pro-Palestinian organization, to deliver talks on campuses that demonstrate the solid common ground shared by Israelis and Palestinians - majorities on both sides - who support the two-state solution.
Indeed, it's a great misfortune that discussion of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict at our colleges and universities is often hijacked by extremists on both sides. We believe that APN on Campus is important because it introduces - or reinforces - the voice of Israel's peace camp that is so often missing from these discussions and debates.
Some students- perhaps many- will disagree with APN's pro-Israel, pro-peace positions.
But for the first time, they'll be consistently hearing these moderate positions. They'll be fully informed. And they'll have their facts straight.
Like me, many have been looking for an alternative, moderate voice on campus.
I've been a strong supporter of Israel for much of my life, due in large part to what many in my family experienced during World War II. Israel's preservation is, for us, an existential issue. As such, it's always been difficult for me to be critical of a Jewish state- with its existence seemingly a miracle- that has been under constant threat for decades. A state founded by a people who have lived with such threats for centuries.
What was never difficult was maintaining a sense of solidarity and sympathy toward Israel.
Those feelings never waned. But as I grew older and began to closely study Israel and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, I found things to be much more complicated than I had thought. It wasn't that the narrative I had been influenced by was necessarily untrue- it was just incomplete. However, I often found it hard to know which sources of information were trustworthy and objective. And it was a challenge to find opinions and analyses of Israel's actions that were painted with shades of grey.
I discovered Americans for Peace Now after my birthright trip to Israel in 2006. Almost immediately, I realized that it was the kind of organization I had been looking for - one willing to criticize the government of Israel when necessary in order to help ensure the survival of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state. The fact that APN is so intimately connected to Peace Now (Shalom Achshav) in Israel only enhanced their credibility.
I was thrilled to have found APN. But I truly wish that I had done so earlier, when I was an undergraduate.
College students these days have an array of options for how they study, learn, and involve themselves on campus. They can enroll in a variety of classes that cover subjects from all angles. They can attend department-sponsored events that feature many different viewpoints. And they have access to a wide range of student groups that seem to cover every perspective on every topic under the sun.
Except when it comes to Israel.
I recently received my master's degree while working as a teaching assistant in my university's Israel Studies Department. There, I witnessed the dynamics that all-too-often characterize discussions about Israel and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: two loud camps polarized at either end of the spectrum, while a much larger group of moderates remains largely unengaged.
At Americans for Peace Now, we're now changing that with APN on Campus.
The pursuit of a balanced and fact-based education for college students is the foundation of APN on Campus. We want to create more space at colleges and universities for moderate voices on Israel. We also want to make APN a go-to resource for students interested in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Ultimately, we want to help arm students with credible, comprehensive knowledge and a willingness to speak out.
With these goals in mind, APN on Campus is comprised of two main areas of focus. The first, our Academic Resource Program, is designed to help faculty members and departments enrich and diversify the conversation about Israel in classrooms and beyond. We are currently offering a number of expert speakers, and will launch an interactive online resource page prior to the Spring 2013 semester to be used both in and out of the classroom.
The second focus area of APN on Campus is our Student Advocacy Initiative, oriented toward relevant student organizations. Its aim is to bolster and broaden the programs, events, and collective actions that these groups sponsor and participate in. We seek to collaborate with those who agree with us as well as those who disagree- as long as we're able to fairly present our position to students.
We'll also be searching for ways to engage students who care about Israel but, until now, have remained apathetic.
Moreover, we'll be exploring other innovative ways to integrate our expertise and resources into a classroom setting and help make the student experience more dynamic and interactive. For example, APN often partners with the American Task Force on Palestine, a moderate pro-Palestinian organization, to deliver talks on campuses that demonstrate the solid common ground shared by Israelis and Palestinians - majorities on both sides - who support the two-state solution.
Indeed, it's a great misfortune that discussion of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict at our colleges and universities is often hijacked by extremists on both sides. We believe that APN on Campus is important because it introduces - or reinforces - the voice of Israel's peace camp that is so often missing from these discussions and debates.
Some students- perhaps many- will disagree with APN's pro-Israel, pro-peace positions.
But for the first time, they'll be consistently hearing these moderate positions. They'll be fully informed. And they'll have their facts straight.
Sincerely,
Aaron Mann
Outreach and Research Associate
Co-Manager, APN on Campus
Americans for Peace Now
(301) 305-8648
ic-amann@peacenow.org