We’d like to start 2016 by sharing some of the moving personal stories of the members of the Parents Circle. Each month we’ll showcase another Israeli and Palestinian who have lost a loved one to the conflict and chosen the path of reconciliation rather than revenge. In this month’s newsletter, we showcase Arab and Yigal.
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What makes you think that the tears on a bereaved, Palestinian mother’s pillow are a different color than those of a grieving Israeli mother? What makes you think that there cannot be any mother whose suffering is greater than an Israeli mother’s?
All mothers who have lost their beloved children share the same pain and no matter what image or label the media, politicians or the powers that be assign, their lives will never be the same.
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Parents Circle members, Robi Damelin and Bassam Aramin will visit Austin, TX, NY,NY and Washington, DC from March 11-March 16. Highlights include participation in the SXSW Conference in Austin (March 11-14) and Theatre J’s production of David Grossman’s Falling Out of Time in Washington, DC (March 17). Would you like to invite members of the PCFF to speak to your community?
Bassam Aramin and Rami Elhanan, Jerusalemites and bereaved Palestinian and Israeli fathers and members of the Parents Circle – Families Forum (PCFF) spoke at an online live streaming event. They spoke of their choice, as bereaved fathers, to work together for peace and reconciliation, and about the current atmosphere of violence, fear, and unrest in the region and the current work of the PCFF.
NPR’s Michel Martin interviews Robi Damelin and Bassam Aramin about the recent wave of violence and unrest in the region, and how the Parents Circle continues to pursue peace.
Thank you for helping us raise more than $25,000 so that Israeli and Palestinian members can participate in a 2-day Emergency Member Assembly to engage in dialogue and recommit to the principles of reconciliation in the face of intense social, cultural, and political challenges. Palestinian and Israeli members must address what is happening together, to put the current situation into context together, to make plans for a more hopeful future, and to give one another the strength and support necessary to carry on this intensely emotional work.
“What is hardest for us during this period, is the inability to meet with our partners on the other side. We know all too well the consequences of this violence and the toll it takes on our morale. This is the most challenging test of our individual and collective ability to put words into action, to continue to pursue dialogue, and to empathize with the other side
