‘HAVE WE LOST HOPE?’ By Angy Shavit, Israel

Hi All, I’m not big on making political posts because I feel like my blog is suppose to make you smile rather than cry, but living in Israel has forced me into feeling a certain way that I would like to address. The past month has been rough on both Israelis and Palestinians. Over a month ago, 3 boys went missing, their bodies were found after 18 days. A few days later, a young Arab boy was found dead in Jerusalem. They say it’s “A way to get back at the Arabs for what they have done.” I put this in quotes not because it was said, but because this is what people think. Now, for the past 6 days, Israelis and Palestinians have been running the moment they hear a siren or in Gaza’s case, the moment they hear a “boom.” On Israel’s side, there are tons of bomb shelters. On Gazans side, there is nowhere to hide. Israelis think that a way to “get back” at Hamas (or whoever did it for that matter considering no one is 100% sure), is by rioting in Jerusalem, throwing rocks, and sacrificing their lives. Palestinians feel that a way to “get back” at Israelis, is by rioting in Jerusalem, throwing rocks, and sacrificing their lives. These are radical, activists who feel harming others, will in some way help them gain respect for Israel/Palestine after they killed 6 of OUR boys. I say 6 of OUR boys, because while the IDF searched for the kidnapped boys, they killed 3 on the Palestinian side. Totaling in 6 lives. How is their life any different then OURS? How are OUR lives different? Palestinian, Israeli, Arab, American, how are we any different? An Arab women was yelled at by a Jewish lady. The women and her son ran off the bus when the women called her a whore, slut, and anything else she could possibly think of to “get back” at this mother. Did this mother kidnap and murder those 3 boys? Did this mother in any way harm your freedom, or happiness? It is said that 110 lives have been taken in these past few days in Gaza. Supposedly 10 of them, are Hamas activists. I ask again, did the rest of the innocent lives that were taken in Gaza kidnap and murder those 3 boys? Harm your freedom, or happiness? My one question is: Have we lost hope? Has society lost it completely? Do we not believe that peace is even possible? When society still has hope, anything is possible. The moment we stop believing that peace is possible, we begin to vote for the wrong political parties, protests about the wrong issues, and overall speak differently. When you promote something to a single human being, you may change that persons perspective. When I, an Israeli who served in the IDF speak to a Palestinian in Gaza or the West Bank, I grant him the feeling that maybe there is someone on the other side that doesn’t want him dead, that maybe someone on the other side has that hope that he has too. That maybe, just maybe, together we’ll be able to achieve peace. Because tomorrow morning when he tells his friend that he spoke to an Israeli who told him that they differentiate between Hamas and Palestinians, that friend will talk to his friend and so on and so forth. For some of us, not all, the hope is there. And maybe just maybe, with just your single voice, the hope will pass on to the next person, and the person after that- and maybe that next person will be a radical activist that once stoned Palestinians cars in East Jerusalem and suddenly was granted the hope that you passed onto him. Let’s share the hope. Angy, YaLa Young Leaders